November 2022

The Shopping Cart, a Health Hazard

The shopping cart must be one of the inventions of the Dirty Thirties we least think about nowadays. Still, back then, it immensely changed the way people shopped. They no longer had to hand carry around all the things they were buying, but could put everything conveniently in the new favorite shopping aid: the shopping cart. Next time you’re standing with a full shopping cart in line at the cash register, just imagine how you would have been able to carry all that stuff without the cart.

But there is one huge problem with shopping carts we think maybe even think less about; it is a great recipient for all kinds of germs and bacteria. It actually constitutes a real danger to our health, especially in these days of new flues and possible epidemics.

It is not just the handle of the shopping cart that is a major risk. Granted, the handles are held by so many people day in, day out. You can be sure that some of them carry some pretty hazardous germs on their sometimes unwashed hands. People also cough and sneeze on them. And how about the shoppers that handle raw chicken, meat and fish? Do you think they are going to wash their hands before getting back at the handle of their shopping cart? All of this makes the handle of a shopping cart a number one risk for virus or germ transmission to your hands. You might think that, all in all, it is not too risky since you can always wash your hands after you shop. But remember that with those hands you will be picking fruit and vegetables, handling your wallet or purse, and maybe touching your steering wheel and parts of your car.

Far worse and more dangerous however is the fold out child seat. People put their infants in there, some wearing diapers and some of those diapers might hold a present. Woman also use it to carry their purses that have may have been put on the floor for example. And how about older children? Lots of them stand on the seat before actually sitting down in it. The horrors they might have stepped in before entering the supermarket…

Yet, most of us also use that same seat to carry our vegetables and especially our fruits, so they don’t get bruised. Lots of vegetables and fruits are eaten uncooked and just maybe even unwashed (try convincing your teenager he always has to wash the fruit he’s going to eat…)

The inside of the cart is no stranger to germs and virus either. Kinds sit and stand in them, sometimes packages of chicken or meat drip juice, you name it. The risk of contamination here are way lower though.

The University of Arizona conducted a four-year study on shopping carts and found them to be full of human saliva, mucus, urine, fecal matter and blood and juices from raw fish, chicken and meat. Closer examination of the handles and the child seats showed some harbored E-coli, Salmonella, Staphylococcus, Influenza and many others. They actually ranked third on the list of worst public things to touch, just below playground toys and the armrests of public transportation. Shopping carts are far worse than public bathrooms; at least those get cleaned way more often.

So what can you do to protect yourself? If the supermarket offer sanitation wipes, use them diligently on handle and seat. Clean at least the bottom of the cart. If the supermarket doesn’t supply any wipes, use commercially available ones, like Clorox brand or simply use hand sanitizing gel with alcohol on handle and seat.…

Raising a Green Family – 25 Easy Ways to Conserve Our Planet and Save Yourself Money in the Process

So you want to “go green,” huh? I’ll tell you how!

Sell your minivan or SUV and buy a hybrid. And while you’re at it, have solar panels installed on your roof for an alternate energy source. Make your own clothing out of hemp grown in your own backyard, hydrated by water you’ve been collecting in rain barrels. Go ahead, I’ll wait. Let me know when you’re done.

What’s that? You don’t have thousands of dollars to spend on new cars and total home remodels?

Okay, neither do I.

What we need are feasible and realistic ideas to help us leave a smaller carbon footprint, reduce the consumption of resources, teach our kids how to be ecologically responsible, and how to save some money in the process! We all know how to throw things in the recycle bin, but there are other easy things we can do every day.

Re-use shopping bags. You can buy cloth shopping bags at almost any store these days. They are inexpensive and sturdy, and are usually very roomy. If you don’t want to invest in shopping bags, ask for paper bags. We don’t need more plastic polluting our oceans.

Replace the light bulbs in your home with fluorescent bulbs, and turn off lights when not in use. You’d be surprised how much power it takes to illuminate a standard incandescent bulb. Fluorescent bulbs are 4 to 6 times more energy efficient than incandescent bulbs.

Try not to buy bottled water. Are we really willing to pay a buck or more, for water? If you don’t like the taste of tap water, an inexpensive water filtration system on your kitchen faucet will produce better tasting water. Buy yourself a groovy water bottle to refill and keep with you. You will save yourself a lot of money!

Become a bento family. You don’t need plastic baggies and disposable containers to pack these eco-friendly lunches, and the very design encourages people to pack healthier, less processed foods. Which leads me to my next tip…

Stop buying processed foods. I know we’re all busy, but setting aside some time to make freezer meals or prepare snacks yourself is much better than buying sodium and high fructose corn syrup laden foods.

Buy from local farmers. There are so many benefits, I don’t know where to start. Local produce is fresh, often organic, and always more delicious. Local farmers and business owners are supported, and large gas-guzzling trucks have not had to crate the produce to stores.

Carpool. Carpool with co-workers, other parents, friends. You’ll all save money on gas, and fewer carbon emissions are always a good thing.

Walk or ride bikes. Obviously, the added bonus here is the physical exercise for your family.

Participate in or organize clothing swaps. We all know how fast our kids outgrow their clothes, and we spend a lot of money on new clothes for them. Some PTO parents and churches have been known to organize clothing swaps. Meaning, people bring clothes to donate, and they take what they need. This is an excellent way to reduce consumption of resources, and save us a TON of money!

Turn off the water while brushing your teeth.

Turn off computers when not is use or at night. Don’t just sleep or hibernate them.

Reuse gift bags and gift wrap. A friend of mine and I made an agreement years ago that we would not write on the tags on gift bags when we gave each other gifts, that way we can reuse the perfectly pristine gift bags.

Turn down the thermostat, especially at night. Just turning it down a degree or two will show savings on your heating bill.

Install weather stripping around doors and windows.

Hang clothing to dry, or remove clothes from the dryer before they are completely dry. A clothes dryer is typically the second-biggest electricity-using appliance after the refrigerator, costing about $85 to operate annually. That’s why you won’t see an Energy Star sticker on a clothes dryer anytime soon.

Don’t rinse dishes before putting them in the dishwasher. Scrape them, but let your dishwasher do the work.

Take showers, not baths. Believe it or not, you save a lot of water. If you can stand turning off the water while you soap up and scrub, even better.

Don’t use spray air fresheners. Use natural things to freshen your home.

Visit the local library instead of buying books. Unless your child has a favorite book he or she will read again and again, just borrowing books from the library actually promotes reading because there are new and exciting books to read on a regular basis. Added bonus, it’s free!

Buy rechargeable batteries. …

Super South Beach Shopping – Outdoor Antique and Collectibles Market

South Beach shopping is not usually a morning activity for those visitors of beachside Miami. These early bird excursions are mostly unheard of for locals, who eat late, stay up until the wee hours and generally rise just shy of noon. Savvy shoppers make an exception, however, for the Outdoor Antique & Collectible Market on famed Lincoln Road.

From October until May, two or three Sundays a month, the pedestrian-only Lincoln Road Mall changes its look from chic urban shopping Mecca to funky urban treasure hunt. And explorers come out in droves, from interior designers to deejays to lovers of Lucite. Over 100 dealers display furnishings, jewelry, collectibles and an amazing assortment of goodies from the 1900s to 1960s.

Because this is Miami we’re speaking of, there’s always a heavy emphasis on the iconic Mid-Century Modern pieces most widely associated with the city. Mid-century style describes an architectural, interior, and product design movement that rose to prominence from 1933-1965. Furnishings had clean lines and were beautiful yet always functional. Scandinavian designers played a big part in the movement and the look still resonates today, in homes of all styles. Products most often associated with Mid-Century Modern include lighting, glassware, tableware, ceramics and furniture.

Famed designers of the era include Alvar Aalto, Charles and Ray Eames, Max Gottschalk, Finn Johl and Donald Wexler. While you may not score an Eames chair at the market, you will, no doubt, have as much fun people watching as you do shopping. And of course, you’ll find all sorts of things beyond the “modern” scope as well. Fuel up with some coffee, then go on the ultimate scavenger hunt.

It’s said that a design-centric shopper can furnish an entire apartment at South Beach’s Outdoor Antique Market, with a little budget and a good eye. Guests of Solara Surfside won’t have to undertake such a daunting prospect, but can still opt to ship home anything special, no matter its market’s inaugural 2010 date is October 10, and various Sundays through May 8 will see happy, colorful crowds jostling for a better look at a boggling array of cool Miami objects d’art and vintage clothing. Kicking off at the almost-unheard-of-in-Miami eight a.m. hour, the market lasts all day, but shoppers who visit too close to the 5:00 cutoff risk missing out on much of the wonder.

Vendors are set up between the 800 and 1000 blocks of Lincoln Road Mall, and on Lenox and Michigan Avenues, in South Beach. A bevy of cafes and coffee houses offer brunch, lunch and a variety of beverage options. Shop ’til you drop, on Lincoln Road, South Beach, where shopping can’t be beat!…

Dollar Value of Your Time

Is it not amazing that we spend so much time watching what we spend by way of money, yet we expend our time without care or concern? This may well be an age old conundrum, yet it applies critically to the on-line generation. Starting with a Google search we sit at our computer clicking an ever endless sequence of links. Invariably, just clicking through to where we have been before.

Return on Investment

Our lifespan is usually measured in years, yet it is also marked off in minutes and seconds as they tick away. This raises a very pertinent challenge to how we value our existence. For example, suppose we are shopping on-line, looking to save on purchases by finding the ever elusive cheaper, or even free option. From the point of view of a business you would not want to spend more money on the search than you are saving from the exercise of the search. However, you are in a business, the business of living, with a limited amount of time at your disposal. It is time to consider just how much of your lifetime you will give up to save a dollar or two. Yes, we should be prudent, but my experience is that the time expended is frequently excessive for the savings achieved.

Our True Self Worth

It is interesting to watch people, including ourselves, as we move through life, to see where we place our values. At the end of each day we may feel that life was full and meaningful, or we may feel somewhat frustrated at how little we achieved. This invariably is because our life is out of balance. There needs to be balance and measure in our existence, and this will not be achieved by a person devoted to their computer. How stupid would that be? I devoted my life to my computer. What about the other facets of living well, including preparing meals, caring for our property, caring for our physical wellbeing and caring for others. If any one of these and the various other activities we undertake is seen to be a drudgery, just reflect on the good fortune we have to be able to mow the lawns, tend the gardens and attend to all the other aspects of living. When this capacity is taken from us, we will suddenly see the treasure of all the demands on our being.

On-line Wisdom

Computer users are at great risk of imbalance in their lives. Computers are wonderful tools and they can relieve us of loads of work giving us easy access to volumes of information. But computers must be managed since you are the master or mistress while the computer is the slave. Remember the value of your time, versus the monetary benefit from time expended. If you spend an extra dollar you can always get another dollar to replace it. If you spend an extra minute that minute will not be replaced in this lifetime. We should keep it all in perspective discriminating between what is good value and what is waste or loss. Live well, enjoy life and keep the computer in its appropriate role as slave to suit our purpose.…

Broome Shopping

So how is it possible to get presents, clothes and pearls in Broome? Further down is a helpful guide for Broome shopping and for yourself to take home from your vacation.

THE HIDDEN VALLEY

In case you are attempting to hunt for great scents and oil, then here is the location for you. The soaps in this shop are all handmade from the workers of Broome. The closes at 4:30pm but nevertheless a visit in this particular shop will probably be great. At the Sunday morning markets, the store sells its soaps. You’re also able to order by mail order if you’d like. They have soaps like Full Moon Rising and even sell pearls and oils. The retail price is dependent upon the item and the size and style of what you will be buying. The retail price ranges from $3.50 upwards.

SIMPLY BROOME

The store recently opened in the community. It displays different artwork among the indigenous people, books, handmade soaps, as well as other local products that is certainly very well liked. You are going to like the store when you walk right through mainly because of the great scents surrounding the shop.

A SHOP JIMMY CHI ARCADE

Jimmy Chi arcade is a comfy and easy to take a hike from Carnarvon Street to Dampier Street. Two shops are situated in the community where they provided local clothes available for purchase. A Cafe is as there for you to relax and take a stop in case you cannot put up with the heat in the area. In front of the arcade is a bus stop which is going to Cable Beach.

COURTHOUSE MARKETS

This shop contains locally made arts and crafts, candles and incense, hip gears and hemp clothes. The Courthouse Markets are thought to be the biggest art and crafts markets based in the Kimberleys. You can even eat and relax together with the music and foods they serve. This will surely be described as a great experience.

KAILIS PEARLS

If you love pearls, Broome has two of the finest producers of quality pearls and by far the most awesome set ups. Kaillis pearls is the pioneers in pearl farm which is situated in the Roebuck Bay. They cook creative and classy designs.

PASPALEY PEARLS

Aside for Kaillis Pearls, there is one other popular name in the pearl business, Paspaley Pearls. Paspaley Pearls, like Kaillis, stands out as the pioneering of cultured pearl far which started out in the 50’s. Their farm is found 420km northern Broome called Kuri Bay. They’ve made lavishing types since then.

KIMBERLEY BOOKSHOP

There is also various choices of newly published books. This bookshop includes greater than 8000 books as well as other books that are well designed for book also stock numerous books about Broome, Kimberley, local arts and more.

MAGABALA BOOKS

The shop stands out as the only indigenous publishing house that is operated independently. It’s objective will be to attain commercial publishing plus more. They have a range of Indigenous novel collections, poetry, social background and biographies and literature.

Go on a spree in Broome using these recommendations, read some reviews, find some tips for shopping the area.…

Why People Live Online

I was watching one video recently that discussed why people buy. A very straight forward thing probably. We buy because we need goods or services to sustain our lives.

In a busy world with an overload of information and ear blocking advertising that we need to buy this, buy that, go there, do this, it becomes a real hassle to actually even go shopping. There is so much on the shelves that at the end of the day you can simply get lost and not buy anything at all.

Quite some time ago I have chosen online shopping as an ultimate way of buying! Why? I can do shopping in my own time without having to worry about open-close times of the shop. I can look at an item for as long as I like and compare the prices for the same item on a few different websites to compare the prices. If I shop for clothes, I can always try them on at home in front of my own mirror without having to wait in a fitting room queue. If I don’t like the item, I can always send it back and get my money back very quickly.

All in all, online shopping saves us time and nerves and gives us a wider spectrum of choice in – again – shorter period of time.

I love having time doing what I really enjoy doing. Life shouldn’t be just about worrying and regretting. I don’t yet have kids, but I can’t even imagine what it could be like. I don’t have much time for myself and my family now spending 2 – 2.5 hours a day traveling to and from work, grocery shopping, cooking, cleaning, washing, watching a movie and going to bed. What will it be like when I have kids?

This made me thinking I would not only like to shop online, but to also work online! I have become a member of Six Figure Mentors community of online marketers to be able to live life and stop worrying about not having time to enjoy it properly. I am not lazy and work is an essential part of everyone’s lives; work is what has turned us into intelligent beings – be it physical or mental work. But, when I retire I want to have things to reminiscent about with a smile on my face or a tear in my eyes. I don’t want to only wake up from night mares about how hard it was to wake up at 6am, how morally unrewarding it was to spend more than 60 hours a week in the office and how many places I haven’t visited and how many hours I have not spend with my lovely family.

Shopping and working online is a real break through, a get away! A get away from very early mornings, from a train full of gloomy faces, a get away from moody bosses and short lunches where you can’t even enjoy the food you eat due to lack of time.

Six Figure Mentors have laid a foundation for me to become my own boss, has given me a great hope that if I do my homework and work on my skills, it will pay 100 fold by giving me a better income and more time to spend with my loved ones and actually start seeing sun more often than just during random weekends.…

How to Make Sure Your Online Shopping and Selling Arrives on Time

Many people now buy a lot of products online, whether is a music CD or a DVD or even clothing and our weekly food shopping, there are many items available to buy online and quite a lot of the time it can be cheaper as well as more convenient. A growing number of people are indulging their entrepreneurial spirit and actually selling items online, whether this is unwanted possessions on eBay or actually starting home businesses where you can sell your own products online.

A large part of making sure that any buying or selling online goes smoothly is that the product gets sent via a reliable delivery service to ensure that it arrives quickly to prevent buyers getting angry or frustrated that their order has been delayed. Many people will buy items online that are gifts for friends and family, many eBay buyers may claim this when they find their parcel has been delivered later than expected and whilst it could be a rather flimsy argument, the idea behind it that by sending something late you could have let your customer down is something a lot of home businesses and individuals that don’t have huge customer service departments like major companies should be concerned about.

Sending your parcels by a courier instead can instil some confidence in the buyer so that they are assured that by ordering from you they are going to get the best deal and a quick delivery that many people will be looking specifically for. Couriers used to be the kind of option only large businesses or people looking to ship large quantities would use but these days as the rise of home based businesses and similar ventures they have made their prices much more affordable to even regular individuals only needing to send one parcel securely.

With couriers you can get the benefits of a much less cluttered mail system so your parcel won’t be sat under a pile of other mail items but also they typically offer a much more detailed tracking system so you can keep a close eye on exactly where your parcel is and when you can expect to see it arrive. Couriers will also make extra attempts to deliver items such as leaving a card for rearranging a delivery or informing you that the parcel has been left with a neighbour or stored in the garage or any other secure area.

When it’s your bunnies and reputation on the line you should make sure that when you send a parcel, you send it securely with the help of an experienced parcel courier.…