Anne Rondepierre

~ words of wisdom ~

__________________________________________________________________________________________

friday, november 6

Bread And Water

When you go out to eat, you could be paying a lot for the bread and water. I've got some surprising money making tricks some restaurants use.

If you've noticed you have to ASK for water, bread and even butter at some restaurants, there's a reason for that. Some of them will even charge you for it. Check out these surprising profits on things we take for granted:

Water - many restaurants hold back on the tap water hoping you'll be thirsty and order a cocktail or pricier beverage. Some push the bottled water with an average 192 percent markup in price.

Bread - in some eateries, not only do you have to request it, you could be charged a surprising $3 per basket. And unless you like it dry, butter could set you back another $2.

Soda - a glass costs the restaurant only about a dime, but to make matters worse, and profits more, some water it down.

Veggies - you'll see them a la carte more often these days. That portion of broccoli costs the restaurant about $1.50, but you'll shell out about $6 to enjoy it.

Lemon - they could be charging for that too soon. The markup on iced tea is huge, and in most cases, that 10 cent lemon wedge is costing the restaurant more than the beverage itself.

thursday, november 5

Retrosexual

Retrosexuals unite. They're all over the place, and you might be one too. It's the new term bestowed on Facebook users who are enjoying connecting with their old flames. With Facebook catching like wildfire among the 30 to 50 year old crowd, there's potential for a virtual blast from the past every time you log on. W. Keith Campbell, author of "The Narcissism Epidemic" explains, it's natural to wonder what he or she looks like after all these years, and what path their life has taken, and it's easier than ever to open that time capsule, be it like a gift from the past or a can of worms. It's sort of an ongoing high school reunion.

So even if you don't consider yourself part of the retrosexual revolution, chances are you've got a Facebook friend who is, and that high school crush they had on you is alive and well.

wednesday, november 4

World Series

Ok baseball fans, the season's almost over and it's a long way to April. Of course the Yankees have the most World Series victories under their belt with 26, but do you know who won the first World Series? In 1903 they were known as the Boston American Club. They played against the Pittsburgh Pirates in a best of 9 match, and won 5 games to 3, winning the last 4 in a row!

Of course we didn't have the luxury of watching the series from the comfort of our living rooms until 1947, so you would have needed a ticket to see Boston's victory back in 1903, and that would have set you back a whopping 50 cents! A far cry from the $1,000 average asking price for a New York game tonight or tomorrow.

tuesday, november 3

GPS Home

If you've got a GPS, don't save your home address in there, it's a literal map to your house. Consider this scenario. A couple is at a football game, their car is broken into, and the thieves take the GPS and the garage door opener. Not only do the crooks know they're not home, and approximately how much time they've got, but they also have directions to the house and easy access to get inside.

When programming your home address into your GPS, consider putting a nearby address like a store or gas station, or better yet, your local police department!

Source: marydesilva.wordpress.com

monday, november 2

Now What?

You found the perfect pumpkin, carved the perfect face, now what? Halloween is over, now what about the jack-o-lantern that's sure to be frowning soon? You may want to give it a proper burrial. That's right, pumpkins are great for your garden. You can bury the whole thing, or break it up into pieces. It's chock full of nutrients that your garden will love, and if you've carved it, there probably aren't any seeds that will be sprouting up in the spring.

For any whole pumpkins or gourds you've got displayed, and don't plan to eat, remember they're great for composting, and smashing them can be half the fun!

sunday, november 1

Pace Yourself

If you can't help dipping into that leftover bowl of Halloween candy, you could be putting your immune system at risk. Bacteria and yeast in our blood stream feed on sugar, and too much candy can cause an imbalance and weaken it's fighting power. All those goodies can stress you out too, after the sugar high, there is a low, and that puts your stress hormones into overdrive trying to level you out.

If that's not enough incentive to keep that bowl of candy out of reach, get this: Too much sugar can stick to the proteins in our body, causing our tissues to lose elasticity, in our skin and internal organs. That means we're just enhancing the aging process!