Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Psssst, Pass It On!

Good morning Around-The-Towners! If you can think of a friend that might benefit from reading the tips in Around The Town, would you do me (and them) a favor and forward your daily update to their inbox? They can also look up our website directly at http://www.barbaroundthetown.com/. To get the same great daily updates that you do, they simply need to fill in their email address and hit subscribe on the blog's homepage. Don't forget, Around The Town also has a facebook page, http://www.facebook.com/BarbAroundTheTown where different and unique information is posted. If you get one and not the other, you might be missing out on the latest deal!

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Buying The Best Watermelon for Your Dollar

Nothing screams summer like a nice, fresh watermelon. It is full of vitamin C and A- good for your immune system.  It also provides potassium, and lycopene.  At only 46 calories per cup, it won't hurt your waistline either.  Are you like me and you have no idea what makes a watermelon "the best?" I found some helpful tips in this month's Better Homes and Gardens that might help. 

1. Look for a creamy yellow spot- that means that the fruit was allowed to rest on the ground and fully ripen before being harvested.  No spot? It was likely picked prematurely.
2. Look for high density.  The heavier the fruit, the juicier the slices. 
3. Look for uniform shape.  Don't worry about size or roundness, but do look for fruit that's symmetrical.  Irregular shape hints at poor growing conditions.

Enjoy!

Sunday, May 27, 2012

CityPASS for Vacation Fun

Looking for a way to have fun with the family, but still stretch your dollar? Check out CityPASS and zero in on the top must-see attractions, saving you 30-50%. CityPASS has done all the hard work of researching and negotiating the deals for you. Check out CityPASS for Southern California, Hollywood, San Francisco and other memorable cities. Buy it at the first attraction you visit or at http://www.citypass.com/.

Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Free Service Reduces Your Junk Mail

Here's a great way to take a step towards becoming more green, and to reduce the junk load in your mailbox at the same time. Less paper to deal with means more time to concentrate on summer fun! Tired of the excessive catalogs that clog up your mailbox? Resolve to try Catalog Choice- this free service will notify the catalogs of your choice of your desire not to receive their catalogs. You make the list, they do the work. I have done this myself- it takes a while to kick in, but eventually it does work. Check it out. https://www.catalogchoice.org/

Sunday, May 13, 2012

Seniors Eat For Less at Souplantation Monday-Thursdays between The Hours of 2 and 5pm

Souplantation restaurants is offering seniors age 60 and over an all-you-can-eat meal and beverage for only $6.99 from 2pm-5pm Mondays through Thursdays.  http://www.souplantation.com/

Sunday, May 6, 2012

Creative Uses for Bounce Dryer Sheets

These tips came from Around The Towner, Barbara- and I thought many of them might be quite useful. Here are just a few of my favorites:

1. To eliminate odors, put Bounce sheets in your vacuum cleaner, closets, under your car seats, in linen cupboards, athletic bags, laundry baskets, shoes and garbage cans.

2. Bounce sheets are great at repelling bugs, bees, ants, mosquitoes and rodents- so put them in a pocket when you are in the great outdoors, or around trouble spots at your home.

3. Rub a bounce sheet on your shower door and it will dissolve the soap scum.

4.  Clean baked-on foods from a cooking pan. Put a sheet in a pan, fill with water, let sit overnight, and sponge clean. The anti-static agent apparently weakens the bond between the food and the pan.

5. Use your Bounce sheet to magnetically attract pet hair.

Friday, May 4, 2012

Beer (Friday) and Wine (Saturday) Tastings at Bev Mo!

Would you like an expert's opinion on the best beers and wines and help customizing labels to your personal tastes? If so, Bev Mo can help you out!  I visited the Oceanside store on Vista Way and they host beer tastings for $1 on Friday evenings between 4 and 7pm.  On Saturdays from 1-4 a sommelier will be on hand to go over wines with you. Beverages will be paired with cheeses, salamis and crackers.