Staying Cool for Under $10.00

When all you want to do is sit inside and stay by the air conditioning, it is hard to think about enjoying any outdoor fun. But I am going to tell you 5 things you can do for under $10.00 , that might make you want to get out our your cool air conditioned house!
1. Gelato/Ice Cream. We have plenty of ice cream parlors or stores to choose from. And guess what? They are all inside in the AC. So frequent one of your local favorites today!
2. Putt-Putt. Remember when you were a kid and you used to love to play it? Well your kids love it too. I have found that I am much better at it now that I am an adult. Oh, and guess what? They have an arcade that is INSIDE!! But so are the games, and that would be another splurge!
3. Museum/SciWorks. We have several museums that are entertaining and don’t require an application of sunscreen.
4. Games. You can find great deals on games at Target or WAL-Mart. We have been playing the classic game CLUE and it is really great family entertainment!
5. Movies. The cinemas are having Summer Movie days on Tuesday. They play a classic movie and popcorn and drinks are only $1.00. Yes, ONLY $1.00. You can’t beat that with a stick!!
So go on out and venture into that bright, hot sun! It may feel miserable in the heat, but you will feel cool saving on these summer splurges!!

How Much Money Do You Need To Be Happy?

So it is Monday and that means it’s all about the money.  I saw this interesting article and I thought I would share it with you.  It asks the question, how much money do you need to be happy?  I think that is an excellent question! The article which conducted several studies, aims at finding out whether money makes you truly happy and what is it about having money that makes your life seem better.

The research found that money can bring life satisfaction but not happy feelings.  The questions of the everyday had more to do with feelings. For example, did you smile a lot today?  Did someone show your respect or did your kids make you laugh?  These were questions that seemed to have less bearing on money matters and more on the emotional factors.

And I think that is something we should all try to focus on in our lives.  Was it a good day, and if not how can we make it better?  Will money make it better?  Maybe, but then maybe it won’t. Read this article for yourself and let me know what you think.

Money does make the world go round, or does it?

Here is the article:

http://finance.yahoo.com/family-home/article/110009/how-much-money-do-you-need-to-be-satisfied

What’s your passion…..

I’m three weeks out to my half Ironman in Wilmington, NC. I’m a little scared even mentioning the race here because now I’ve got to do it! I have my full body wetsuit and am monitoring the ocean temperature, hovering at 65 degrees. All I have to do is get out of the water and I can do the rest of the race, heck, all I have to do is get in the water-that’s the hardest part, once you’re in then you have to swim! Sink or swim.

My friends tell me that I am crazy, why do I do this? I do it because it’s a passion of mine. I love working out (ok, so maybe I am crazy) and pushing my body to the limits, love it so much to squeeze myself into a sausage casing and look like a total dork, to popping blood blisters between my toes during a marathon.

I have a friend that goes away on scrapbooking retreats! SCRAPBOOKING RETREAT! They go to a monastary and scrapbook for the weekend. I hear this and go back to highschool inclinations – I’d be jumping out the windows of the convent in the middle of the night to get away! But that’s her passion, she may not understand my blood blisters, I don’t understand going away for a weekend with the girls and scrapbooking, I mean, especially when there are bars and spas within driving distance!

So, what’s your passion? Is there something that your friends will call “crazy?”