February,
2010Why Go to a Salon?
In an effort to save a few dollars, women will sometimes forgo an
actual salon hair styling appointment just so that they can save a
few dollars. They will find a “bargain” of a facial, or to get
their eyebrows waxed or tweezed. Do it yourselfers will color and
perm their own hair, all in the interest of saving money. Is this
really the best thing to do?
Going to a salon can sometimes seem like an unnecessary expense,
and when money’s tight, many women prefer to stop spending on
themselves. However, let’s look at what you get when you go to a
reputable salon.
Every salon is unique. Its uniqueness depends on its location,
making it convenient for you. Perhaps you are treated like a queen,
being offered, coffee, sparkling water, or juice as soon as you
arrive. Does the staff compliment you on how you look? Do they talk
with you like a friend? Being treated well is one thing that will
keep you coming back to a salon.
Do the prices seem a little high? They may seem high. Are they too
high? Probably not. Unless you run your own small business, it will
be difficult for you to see where the price of your hair styling is
going, but the people who cut and color your hair are very highly
trained, and many salons require continuing education as a
condition of employment. Would you rather have Sally Sue from the
local beauty college do your coloring, or would you like to have
some who is educated in all matters related to coloring, condition
of your hair, style, and ease of management do it?
It is important to remember that you get what you pay for. I go to
a salon because that is often the only time that I’m actually the
one being pampered. I don’t have to do a thing for myself except
move from chair to chair as directed. My hair is shampooed, my neck
and scalp are massaged, my hands manicured and I can either
chit-chat or close my eyes and slide into a peaceful zen-like
state.
I don’t often have times in my life when I can completely relax and
know that something is being accomplished. I love my look. I used
to try to do it myself, but I never looked really sharp and put
together. I looked…well, home-made. Now I feel that I get more
respect from the people I work with and from perfect strangers when
I am out in public. Because I care enough to pamper myself, my life
has changed for the better. I go to a salon because they are the
experts and I’m not.
Monitor your Credit Card Activity!
I was a lucky one. I stopped using credit cards for most
everything. Because of this, when I had to use my credit card to
make an online payment because I didn’t have enough time to mail
the check, the credit card company noticed that after months of no
activity, suddenly there were thousands of dollars of charges in a
state in which I did not live. This was fortunate because they were
able to stop all activity on the card until they had spoken to me
in person.
ad I been using my card, they might not have noticed that there was unusual activity going on. Please, check your balances and activity at least once a week and always know where your cards are.
"Why should my happiness depend on the thoughts of
what’s going on in someone else’s head?
~Ralph Waldo Emerson
Foods to Have on Hand
Unexpected
company can make most of us tear our hair out, but if you have a
few basic things on hand, you can often pull a gourmet meal out of
a hat. Corn, black beans, canned red peppers, onions, garlic, olive
oil, and balsamic vinegar made a fantastic salad. If you made some
of that artisan bread from last month, make more and keep a loaf in
the freezer. Salad and bread and you have a meal! Frozen sausage,
cubed hash brown potatoes, canned cannellini beans, and chicken
broth makes a fantastic soup. Add that bread and you have a
meal!
Simple wine and cheese, and yep, you guessed it, bread makes a simple but elegant supper.
Making Wine at Home
I got a great gift this year. It was a wine making kit. I really
enjoy drinking wine, and when I opened this gift, I couldn’t have
been more thrilled. Would you believe that out of a bag of
specialized grape juice, some wood chips, yeast, and a few other
secret ingredients I can make a five gallon batch of wine??? I
liked chemistry in school, and this feels just a little bit like a
chemistry class, only I’ll be able to drink the potion when it’s
all done. We’re asking all our friends to save their wine bottles
because we need 30 of them when the wine is ready to be bottled. We
started it two weeks ago, and will be checking tomorrow to see how
the specific gravity is doing.
The kit comes with explicit instructions, and it’s really so easy even a monkey could do it! We’re making a Barolo, a pretty bold red wine. I figure if it’s good we’ll drink it, if it’s marginal, I can always cook with it! I’ve heard a number of people who have tried this and say their wine is just as good as that you buy in the store. It might not be $75 a bottle good, but as I’m more interested in bottles less than $10, this is a bargain because it comes out to about $2.35 a bottle! It will take six months for the wine to actually be ready, so I’ll have to keep you posted. In the meantime, look up brewing and winemaking suppliers in your area. You might just find a great new hobby! Involve some friends and swap!
