4TH OF JULY DEALS AND A FRUITY DRINK

I've been hearing family rumblings of travel and cookouts to celebrate the holiday.  The traveling part sounds fun, but if you've been reading this blog, I'm no fan of cook-outs. Almost every time I attend, the food is drenched in barbecue sauce, which I hate.  And there is some Bobby Flay grilling finesse missing in a few instances. (lol)

Not that anyone cares, but I think the focus should be on providing guests with unique drinks they can't find anywhere else.  If you're going to be stuck outside in the heat, that's the least the host can do, right?(lol)  By the way, both of these recipes tell you to muddle certain ingredients, but it just seems simpler to say crush.  Your choice, of course. *heh*

Ingredients - Liza Hawkins

• 4 Strawberries, cut into chuncks
• 12 Fresh Mint Leaves
• 8 ounces lemonade
• 1 1/2 Ounces Gin or Vodka
• Ice

OR

Ingredients - Lauren Conrad

• 3 Large Strawberries
• 1 Mint Sprig
• 3 Ounces Fresh Lemon Juice
• 4 Tablespoons Sugar
• 2 Ounces Vodka
• 6 Ounces water

Instructions

1. Place half the mint in the bottom of a pint-sized mason jar. Add the strawberries and the gin, then use the handle of a wooden spoon to muddle them together.
2. Add enough ice to fill the mason jar half-way, stir vigorously with the wooden spoon handle (or place a lid on it and shake it for 10-20 seconds), then fill it almost to the top with lemonade.
3. Garnish the strawberry mint lemonade cocktail with the remaining mint and a strawberry.
4. Serve immediately!

OR

Instructions

1. Muddle 3 Strawberries and the mint sprig
2. add the lemon juice, sugar, vodka and water.
3. stir until the sugar is completely dissolved
4. Top with ice and serve

FREE ADMISSION!
If you, or someone you know is in the military or a veteran, Cedar Fair Amusement Parks will provide FREE admission at select locations around the 4th of July. If you click on each link listed below, you can get specific information at parks which may be close to you.  This is a HUGE deal with plenty of savings!
Cedar Point
King’s Dominion
King’s Island
Carowinds
Dorney Park
Valleyfair
Wildwater Kingdom and World’s of Fun.

FUN STUFF TO DO
July 4
The 'Works July 4th on Fayetteville Street. July 4: 12pm - 10:00pm. Downtown Raleigh celebration that features music, a Watermelon Seed Spitting Contest, Art Exhibitions, games for the kiddies and ending the night with fireworks at 9:30 p.m.  Yay!

DEALS ON LOTS OF STUFF - Go to this site to find fantastic on-line deals for Independence Day.  There are coupons, promo codes and more, to help you score the lowest possible price for the things you want! www.dealsplus.com

Kohls (more coupons): Pre 4th of July Sales & Coupons - 

• Gold Star Clearance Event w/ Up to 70% Off
• Get 25-40% off dresses, skirts, tops, & bottoms for women

• Amazon (more coupons): Pre 4th of July Sale on Outdoor, Clothing, Accessories, Electronics, and More

RO'S PERSONAL DEALS

One of my hobbies is to find deals and steals, so you can imagine how thrilled I was to find a dozen large eggs for $ .50 cents at Carlie Cee's (sorry, this chain is only in NC, and you can just imagine how many people were standing around to take advantage!), and a Liz Claiborne Handbag for just $1.00 at a local thrift store that was having a special.  Yay!  

SAVE THE DATE!
Have you been thinking about taking a trip to Nashville?  Well, mark September 1 - 5 on your calendar to attend the Southern Living Nashville Now Event where you can celebrate all the things you enjoy in one location, and includes plenty of LIVE music, fun/tasty food and super style ideas.  This would be the perfect getaway!

I can't remember what happened yesterday, so I was surprised to know that a study was completed by Emory University in 2013 on the habits of readers. They determined that the effects of reading a book actually lasts for 5 days, based on a study of the brain, but after that, the memory fades.  Very interesting!

DO YOU EVER REALLY READ YOUR TBR PILE?

Before I forget, stop by to visit our very good buddy Kim from www.caffeinatedbookreviewer.com .  She always has tons of great info about book reviews, blogging tips, movies and other fun stuff. 

PILING IT ON
When I was a lot younger, my TBR pile was very small because I was literally reading all the time. 

Yes, I have read all these books! (lol)

 Fast forward to 2016, and while I'm always reading, the list of books I still need to read is now astronomical and I can't keep up! To make things worse, I continue to add more novels!  What in the heck is wrong with me?

After reading The Shining, by Stephen King, I made a conscious effort to get every book he's ever written, but I'm way behind.  His books fill up a very large box that I definitely need to read one day, but I don't know if I'll ever get it done. When people are giving out FREE books, I have to have them, and if my favorite author writes a new novel, I'm right there at Barnes and Noble to get a fresh new copy.  Don't even mention the books from the library and thrift stores, or gifted books from friends who aren't readers.  Then there are all these great Book Bloggers out there who provide such fabulous reviews about new authors, that I just have to try. What's a girl to do?

What about you?  Will you ever get to that pile, or will it just sit there, gathering dust?

Every once in a while, I find a program on television that really has me scratching my head in disbelief, and Airport Security: Colombia is one of them. Many people use this airport to get to the US, Mexico, France and Spain.  Let me just say this - if you're thinking about swallowing 20-40 capsules of cocaine, (those drugs have a window of just 30 hours before possibly dissolving & killing someone) stashing cocaine in false bottoms of your suitcase or the heels of your shoe, or trying to travel with a false passport, the Colombian Airport is not the place to do it. They are serious about their work, and will cart you off to jail with a quickness.  They actually stopped an elderly nun because she looked suspicious!

TRUE Story - Many, many years ago, while in the Air Force, I took a military flight from North Dakota to California for vacation. One of the requirements before boarding, was to have the drug dogs check each passenger's luggage.  The dog didn't stop until he reached me and my bags.  OMG!  I've never done drugs in my life, so why is this huge German Shepherd stopping, and all eyes on me?!  The MP's searched me and my bag before realizing that the dog kept going back to a white bag that was sitting beside my luggage.  They finally peeked inside and realized the dog was hungry and wanted my cheeseburger and fries!  "Sorry mam, he's not supposed to alert to food", as he smiled and moved on.

DO YOU TIP WELL?

Google and Zagat, the Restaurant Review site, did a study in January and determined that the city of Boston tips better than any other city, with an average of 20%.  The national average is about 18.9%.  The city that tips the worst would be San Antonio at 17.1%. zagat

Can you imagine visiting the same restaurant over and over, and no one wants to serve you because of how you tip?  That would be the pits for sure!

CELEBRITY TOP TIPPERS

1. Dan Ackroyd - $100 or 50% of the check - whichever is greater
2. Rihanna - - $200 on an $82.00 check
3. Amy Schumer - $1000 tip for a $10 drink
4. Brad Pitt - $700 tip for a $1,000 meal
5. Bill Murray(Love his humor!) 120% Tip on $60.00
6. Drew Cary - $400 Tip on a $250.00 check
7. David Beckham - $900 Tip on a $100.00 check
8. Ben Affleck - $90 Tip on a $10.00 check
9. Johnny Depp - $4000 Tip for staying open early morning
10. President Obama - 52% Tip on a Grilled Cheese Sandwich

CELEBRITY WORST TIPPERS

Waiters/Waitresses Beware!  If you see these people at your restaurant, run and run quickly in the other direction!  Jeremy Piven, Britney Spears, Rachel Ray (say it isn't so!) Michael Jordan(cheated on his first wife their entire marriage), Tiger Woods (cheated on his wife with a zillion women and they have the texts to prove it), and Usher. Words of wisdom to some of these non-tippers. Waiters and waitresses work hard to serve, and cannot use DVDs, autographed pictures, $ .08 or no tip at all to pay any bills.

FUN FOOD FRIDAY

The other day I was watching the Food Network, and they featured a restaurant called Black Tap which has some truly insane milkshake recipes!  If you have the skills to make these at home, or want to take a road trip to New York to check them out for yourself, you won't be disappointed at these over the top culinary delights!

Can you eat this?

$14 Each

Though the restaurant is becoming well known nationally for these outrageous shakes, Black Tap is actually featured on The Top 10 List in Manhattan for their burgers, so you know I am already a happy camper!  But if you're just in the mood for something fun, these crazy drinks will set you back $15, vs  just $7 for their regular shakes.

WATERMELON SHOOTERS W/SORBET

Don't you just adore watermelon? This recipe is super simple to make, and everyone will love how it tastes! Cut a watermelon into slices which are about an inch thick.. Then use a round 1-inch cookie cutter to cut out cylinders. Scoop the centers out of the watermelon cylinders with a melon baller. Fill with small scoops of your favorite sorbet, like lime, strawberry, etc., and garnish with a Mint or Basil Leaf.Freeze until firm - about 1 hour, then you're all set.  Keep some of these in the fridge for when the kids come home, or guests come over. Pinterest

SEA-DOO

Have you ever heard of this type of boat?  Technically, it's called a personal watercraft.  I saw it on an edition of Let's Make a Deal when a an aeronautic engineer from Michigan won it. A friend of mine can't swim, but insisted he would still ride this boat if he won it as a prize. OK.

Then he reminded me that he would take his phone along for the trip and keep it in his swim trunks, just in case. When I asked him what "just in case what?" meant exactly, he told me if that if the boat capsized, or he became stranded, the phone would sure come in handy. Inquiring minds are wondering if you'd take your phone on a ski boat ride?

HELP A VETERAN WHEN YOU CAN

"May no soldier go unloved". Those are powerful words from www.soldiersangels.com, and speak to the needs of our veterans. This organization needs you to donate your time,  as well as critical supplies and funds.  Please visit their website for more information.

WHICH TV JUDGE WOULD YOU USE & TASTY TIDBITS

Do you remember Judge Wapner from The People's Court?  Though it originally aired in California in 1981, the show now calls New York home, and Judge Wapner was the presiding judge until 1993. Other judges who appeared on that same show have been Ed Koch from 1997 - 2000, and from 2000 - 2001, it was Judge Jerry Sheindlin.

  

If that last name sounds familiar, it's because he's been married  for 26+  years to Judge Judy, and sadly, he was not very popular with viewers. He left the show after just 6 months. 

The Honorable Judge Marilyn Milian is my favorite, and has been around since 2001.  If you watch this show, you may  notice that Harvey Levin asks for views of the show in Times Square, and also hosts the very famous gossip show, TMZ.  If you're in that area during taping, it's a great way to be seen on tv. *heh*

Fast forward to 1996 and meet the loudest judge of them all - the bold and and sometimes super funny Judge Judy Sheindlin. She divorced her husband in 1990, then turned around and re-married him in 1991!  Don't come unprepared to Judge Judy's courtroom. 

You're liable to be told she doesn't believe your testimony, and that she's much smarter than you. (lol)  Despite her brash behavior, she's been nominated for 11 Emmy Awards, and the show remains very popular.

State Fair

Are you a fan of the annual fair in your state?  I don't mind visiting, and despite loving rides, I refuse to get on anything that was made in just a couple of days, and can be dismantled in seconds. Meanwhile, I check out the sights, and watch people cook exciting new foods.  At the Minnesota State Fair, they actually have a butter sculpture that was featured on The Travel Channel in 2015 that looks pretty neat, and they fix an ice cream that is super weird.  Let's just say I won't be trying the BBQ Pickle Ice Cream anytime soon.

STYLISTS & PERSONAL SHOPPERS
Are you one of those people who have a gift for styling people in the perfect outfit for work or a special event?  If you live in these areas, Austin, Cleveland,  Dallas,  Minneapolis,  Los Angeles,  Pittsburgh,  Sacramento , San Diego, or the San Francisco Bay area, you can apply for a PT or FT job with https://www.stitchfix.com/careers/styling. You'll be paid for doing what you love AND get employee discounts on trendy clothing.


CHEESE
Who doesn't like cheese?  If you want to try something different for vacation this year, why not take a trip to The Vermont Cheesemakers Festival on July 17?  Tickets for the event range from $20-$60, and you'll have the opportunity to sample or purchase plenty of unique food and drinks from various vendors from 10am - 4pm.      http://vtcheesefest.com/the-event/

IS IT JUST ME?

Has anyone ever noticed the Pampers commercial where the kid is running down the hall in a saggy diaper? I don't know how he can be so perky while stuck in that seriously soaked diaper!  

If it were me, I'd be looking more like this,

 or this,

instead of this.

I'm just saying...