Why I don't Go To The Theatre

I know there are some good movies out right now and I do want to see the latest Twilight movie but I will be waiting until it comes out On Demand so I can watch it in the comfort of my own living room.

Why?

Because I don't like sitting in a theater with a bunch of rude people and that's what usually ends up happening. Some teenager or kid will be kicking the back of my chair, while others are crunching and munching open mouth style on their popcorn and nachos. And there will invariable be a few people who have their cell phones on and the lights will be visible throughout the theater.

Yeah, so I'll wait until it comes out On Demand and I can order it for $5.99 and not have to pay another $8.00 for a popcorn and $4.00 for a small coke. I'll have some coffee and a donut and watch my sparkly vampires and anyone who doesn't like the movie can bite me. lol

Freebie Friday

Welcome to another edition of Freebie Friday, where I tell you what free samples and full sized products I received in the mail and how you can get them too. 

This week I did pretty well. 

I won a book from a blog contest. I won Untamed By Sara Humphreys from a blog contest at The Qwillery. 

I received a sample of BB cream and Pantene mousse for hair and I found the link for these free samples at Hey it's Free. 

I received a full sized box of Advil Congestion Relief from Smiley360. All you have to do to get free samples like this is sign up for an account.

I received a full sized bottle of Afrin from BzzAgent. If you sign up for an account you may be able to get free products too. 

Rats Form Bonds

These are two of my new boys, this is Patches and Fang and they are bonded to one another. Where you find one, the other is always very close. They always sleep together and are almost always lying on top or right next to one another. If one jumps down to get something to eat, the other follows. They groom each other, share food from the same area and keep each other company. If you ever wondered if rats feel love or affection...now you know they do. They feel affection for each other and can show their human that they care when they groom you, lick you and cuddle with you. 

These are just some of the reasons I feel rats make great pets. 

Great Christmas Gifts For Rat Lovers

Ever since getting that $25 gift card to Zazzle.com and picking out the little rat mug pictured above, I've been thinking about what would make great Christmas gifts for people who like rats. There are many cute and thoughtful gifts that have a ratty theme to them but people who don't often look for such things might have a hard time finding them, so I wrote an article that you can find here to help you with your shopping this year. 

I will tell you that I got one of the ideas from a fellow blogger, Confession of The Hockman Girl and her blog post, Making a Memory Ornament. 

I think making a memory ornament of your pets paw print is a wonderful idea and the kits available to do this are inexpensive, and easy to make. So thank you for the great idea :)

The Funny Things That Rats Do

One of my new boys, Fang...likes to hang on the bars of his cage...by his teeth. I didn't know what he was doing actually until I stopped to watch him and saw him hook his top front teeth over a bar, relax his body and go to sleep. That's right, Fang fell asleep hanging from the bar of the cage from his teeth. And he does this all the time. 

He doesn't bite the bars, it's more like he moves his mouth a little bit on the bars until he finds the right spot, then he stops and his little body relaxes and he hangs there...sleeping. Now this is something new to me, I've never seen a rat so this before so I looked at his teeth wondering if something was wrong with them and they were bothering him. Nope, they look fine...nice and yellow, strong and long. 

His eyes are almost closed in this picture and he's just resting his teeth on the bars. I'm finding this fascinating. 

It must be relaxing and comfortable for him to do this, I can't think of another reason why he would do it. He sure is cute though. 

Book Review: Untamed by Sara Humphreys

*I received this book as part of a blog hop contest win*

This third book in The Amoveo Legend series by Sara Humphreys is set in a small town, where everyone knows everyone else and everything that's going go with everyone. Layla knows what she is but is determined not to end up like her mother. Layla isn't going to drop her life and become everything she fears just because her mate has found her and may want her too.

William has found his mate and has tried to connect with her in the dream realm but she isn't cooperating. William, also know as The Ice Man or Mr. Freeze by some of his friends doesn't show his emotions all that often but this petite redhead is going to make him do things he never thought he would do...and like it.

This story proves that opposites really do attract but she's not ready for the emotions and feelings he brings out in her. But when someone hurts Rosie, the woman that has raised Layla and she ends up in the hospital, all bets are off and William calls in his friends for help. Layla meets two other hybrids and sees how much in love they are with their husbands and that seems to make her feel a little bit better about the whole William situation...for a while at least. The twists and turns in this book really had my heart thumping and made it extremely hard to put the book down until the end.

If you're looking for a book with action, backstabbing, shifters of all kinds, twists and turns and a love story you won't soon forget, then this is the book you've been looking for.

I love the whole series and can only hope that there are more books to come. This book can be read as a stand alone but with all the different characters showing up in the different books it's best to read this series from the beginning.

eBook Curmudgeon

Yes, I was just called an eBook curmudgeon by a fan of my blog, in a personal email to me. Now while I might even agree with this, I had to reply and tell her why I am an eBook curmudgeon.

When it comes to books, ebooks, kindles, nooks whatever...I am not very forward thinking. I'm just not, I know it's a personality flaw and I'm ok with that.

Ereaders don't have that new book smell, nor will they ever have that old book smell. You know what I'm talking about. I paperback book that's been sitting on your shelf for 20 years, and yes, I do have books sitting on my shelf that are that old, have a certain old book smell to them. You aren't going to get that with an ebook.

But some of you are probably thinking that's a good thing. Ok, let me ask you something else. What about first edition, signed books that I have? I would much rather have a hard Cover first edition and signed book than a ebook edition that while it can be signed I hear...on Kindles I think...what happens if your Kindle breaks...all your books are lost, no?

I am 42 years old, while I'm not a senior I do think I fall into that 'older generation' slot that isn't adjusting to the new technology. I know it happens because my dad is amazed by the things I can do on my laptop. he has no concept of what a computer is or can do even though I've tried to show him when he comes over. But he's 80 years old and says he's too old to learn something like this. So am I falling into that sorta of mind set? Maybe I am, but I'm sure that when my grandkids are my age their children will have the newest technology craze and it will driving my daughter nuts and she might even be complaining about it like I seem to be doing about ereaders all the time. But who knows.

Times, they are a changing, I'm just not changing with them. Printed books will always have a place in our culture long after the new car smell of those Kindles have worn off. Does an ebook give you the same olfactory and tactile experience that a 20 year old first edition, signed Hard Cover limited edition book will, I don't think so.

Freebie Friday

People have asked me how I get all the free samples and free full sized products that I get. So each week I post a picture of all the free stuff I got that week with links to where I got them. This week I received a big haul as you can see from the picture. Here's what I got: 

This week I received three packets of tea in the mail. I found the link for this freebie at Hey It's Free.

And I got a free "Proudly Owned By Rats" mug from Zazzle.com for posting a blog post about them. 

Christmas Shopping

*My hamster eating a bit of pumpkin pie*

So I'm just about done with my Christmas shopping. Yes, I am one of those people. The people that have most of their Christmas shopping done in September. I start buying stuff for next year right after this year has ended. We're on a tight budget so when I see a good bargain, I snap it up. 

I do almost all of my shopping online, it makes finding things so much easier. All I have to do is look on Amazon for whatever it is I'm looking for. Oh and I also found a great deal on Ebay this past week. I bought something *Which I can't say because my daughter might be reading..lol* but I got a brand new one for half the price they are going everywhere else. woohoo!

Do you have your Christmas shopping done yet? When do you start?

Fictionwise To Close Its Doors

I know a lot of you read ebooks, download ebooks, buy ebooks and probably have heard of Fictionwise.com. So if you have an account there I thought you should know they are closing up shop.

From Fictionwise.com "Fictionwise.com is in the process of winding down its operations, and Fictionwise.com will end sales on December 4, 2012. Once customers opt in to have their titles transfer to BN.com, the transfer begins and the process will be on-going in the coming weeks. Customers will not be able to access Fictionwise Bookshelves through the site after December 21, 2012. A separate communication was distributed regarding Fictionwise accounts. Please visit the FAQ [http://www.fictionwise.com/BN-Transition-FAQ.htm] to learn how to back up your eBook files and for more information about your Micropay dollar refunds, and support details."

The Generation Gap

When my daughter was little I thought I made sure to expose her to some of the great classic movies of my youth, you know...so we would have something to talk about when she got older...lol

But I realize I didn't do a good job because she told me that her boyfriends father asked her a couple of questions about Star Trek and she didn't know the answer to them. So I asked her what the questions were and she told me her asked her who Luke's father was? O.o

I asked her if she meant Star Wars? She looked at me and said, "Yeah whatever, they're practically the same thing."

Gasp!

What?

Did I just hear that right?

Say it ain't so....

I am a Trekkie, so this is an offense to me. I watched Star Trek all the time when my daughter was a kid, but she said she didn't like the show. Omg, was she switched at birth?

I've tried having her sit and watch some of the older 80's horror movies with me...but she laughs at them. She thinks they are cheesy... Now that's the real Horror.

My Wonder Bread Whoa's

So as many of you now know...the Twinkie has gone the way of the Dinosaur. While I don't mind that so much I do mind my Wonder bread being gone as well. As you can see, I still have one lonely loaf of white Wonder Bread left in my freezer. 

After seeing some of the prices for things like Twinkies, Hostess cakes and Wonder Bread on eBay, I'm wondering if I would keep my loaf of Wonder Bread in the freezer and sell it for $500 in about 4 months?

Of course I would think that was a joke if people weren't spending $30 for 6 Twinkies on eBay right now. 

Looks like I'll have to start eating a different brand of white bread for my Bologna sandwiches but I'll tell you one thing, it will never be the same as it was when I was a kid. My mom would buy Wonder Bread and cheap bologna and Lays potato chips. My brother and I would make a bologna sandwich with just a little Mayonnaise and then add a few Lays potato chips right in the sandwich. Squish down that Wonder bread and eat it. 

I still do this sometimes, but my Wonder Bread is now gone...whatever will I do...

I Made Cookies

I used the recipe from the package of Butter flavor Crisco and they came out really good. Yes, I made monster cookies instead of the smaller cookies most are familiar with. I made three dozen but this was all that was left before I was able to get a picture of them. lol They must have been good to go so fast. 

Private Selection Helped My Thanksgiving Dinner

As I mentioned in my last blog post I received some great full sized Private Selection products from BzzAgent.com  The coffee was a big hit with my guests and myself since I love coffee. The citrus stuffed olives were better than any of us thought they would be. We all tried something new today. We started the day off with Buffalo Monterey Jack cheese and crackers along with the olives and a some black olives. 

While I didn't use the pasta sauce today I will be using it with a spaghetti dish I'm making tomorrow with left over turkey. 

As you can see from my picture I was sent quite a few full sized Private Selection products and so far all of them were a big hit. 

Disclosure: I received points for this blog post as well as free samples but all thoughts, ideas and remarks remain my own.

Happy Thanksgiving

I wanted to send a heartfelt "Google Gobble" to all my readers.

Hope you all fill up on Turkey and Pumpkin pie, I know I will.

Freebie Friday!

People have asked me how I get all the free samples and free full sized products that I get. So each week I post a picture of all the free stuff I got that week with links to where I got them. This week I received a big haul as you can see from the picture. Here's what I got: 

3 Poise Pads- I found the link for this freebie on Hey It's Free. 

Clear Shampoo and Conditioner- I found the link for this freebie on Hey It's Free.

Open Nature Granola sample- I got this sample by ordering my groceries at Vons.com. 

Then I received a bunch of free products from Bzzzagent. All you have to do in order to receive free products from Bzzagent is sign up for an account and tell them what you think of the products they send you. This time they sent me:

Coupons for: a free jar of Private Selection Olives, Pasta Sauce and cheese. They also sent me a full size bag of Private Selection Costa Rican Tarrazu Ground coffee and a box of Classic Water Crisps. 

Happy Freebie Hunting!

I have 4 new babies!

That's right I have 4 new rats. Here's one checking out his new hammock. 

This one is a half hairless. One of his parents was a hairless rat and his hair is very sparse. 

Cute baby. 

They are all about a year old. 

Just a little nose sticking out from behind the fleece cube. 

The little one. He's so soft. 

The cage. 

The boys playing with their new wood toy. 

Having fun. 

And the little half hairless one hiding under the hammock. 

Things You Might Not Know About Me

Things you might not know about me.

You might think that with all the articles I've written, all the blogs posts I've done and as much as I'm on fb, email and twitter yapping...that I would touch type really fast. But the truth is, I sight touch type. Meaning I have to look at the keys as I type, but I type pretty darn fast that way.

It irritates me to no end to have things on top of other things in my refrigerator. We have more than enough room in the fridge to have things in a single layer on the shelves. I don't want to have to remove the butter, bologna and salami just to get to the cheese on the bottom of all that. But having two other people in this apartment, it never fails that things get put on top of other things. grrr

I like watching others dance, but I can't dance to save my life. *So no, I can't teach you how to Dougie* But one of my favorite videos to watch it Bumpy Ride by Mohombi. The guys in this video do all sorts of booty shaking.

I can repeat word for word the original Fright Night.

I am lovingly called a space cadet because I can be sitting on the couch, watching tv and be asked what just happened on the tv...and have absolutely no idea because while I might have been staring at it, I wasn't watching it, I was actually thinking about other things. lol I do that all the time.

I hate wearing shoes. When I have to, I wear slip on sandals.

Because of all the different avatars I use on the different sites, you might not know what I look like, so this is me...

My Daughter's Baby Shower

My daughter had her baby shower this past weekend, so I wanted to share some of the pictures with you. One person took a picture of the ultrasound and put it in a frame. Cool gift, right?

The diaper cake. It was so cute. 

My daughter wearing the shirt her aunt Karen made for her. Is that the cutest thing you've ever seen, or what?

One of the baby shower cakes. This one was chocolate strawberry. Omg it was so good. 

This was another of the baby shower cakes, it was vanilla. It's so cute. 

My beautiful daughter. 

My daughter's boyfriend.

Aww how cute. 

The women that hosted my daughter's baby shower. They are holding one of the babies that came with his mother to the shower. There were two babies there and both slept through most of the party. How cute though, right. 

Thank you Tia and Marissa for hosting the baby shower.

My Top Favorite Pets Themed Zazzle.com Products

Have you all heard of Zazzle.com before now? I actually have a store on Zazzle with a few things for sale. My favorite being this cute Christmas Ornament I made from a picture of one of my rats which you can find here.

But I thought I would show you some of my favorite pets themed products from Zazzle.com, so here goes.


Sussex Spaniel Key Chain
See another sussex spaniel at Zazzle

I Love (Heart) My Bakharwal Dog Paw Print Custom Stationery
Browse another bakharwal dog

BRAQUE FRANCAIS KEY CHAINS
Browse other braque francais

We're All Mad Here Round Sticker
View other caterpillar stickers

A fun mug design by David Moore
Shop for other africanis

Augie & Ti Golden Retriever Calendar 2013
Find more dog calendars

GULL TERR KEY CHAIN
View another gull terr at Zazzle

Japanese Bobtail Bumper Stickers
View another japanese bobtail cat

Two pug dogs on leashes mousepad
Shop for another toy bulldog

Oh, Snap Skeleton Stickers
Check out more dog bone stickers

Catholics Vs Convicts T-shirts & Shirts
Browse other catholics vs convicts

Disclosure:
I was given a gift code for a gift certificate for this post but all thoughts are my own.