Tony Brewer View

For several years I’ve been taking my own reusable shopping bags to the grocery store. I don’t want paper or plastic, I want to use my own canvas bags. I bought them years ago from a grocery store that is no longer in business. They used to offer their customers a nickle off of their shopping bill for every canvas bag you used. Well, now that I can’t shop there anymore, I take them to the stores that I use now. But the cashiers glower at me like they are angry that I’m trying to use a reusable shopping bag that wasn’t bought at THEIR store and sometimes the cashier refuses to pack the groceries in them, telling me that if I’m going to use that bag I have to pack it myself! I don’t know why they have a burr under their saddle about that! Kinda aggravating!

Last night’s news really creeped out both Teri and me.  The news story was about a local man who was taking a nap on his sofa.  He was awakened by a noise and when he opened his eyes he saw a naked man in his living room, staring at him!  I’ll bet that guy will be buying some kind of Home Security system pretty soon!

It seems as if not a day goes by where we don’t hear on the news about local burglaries.  With people getting discouraged over the economy, and the job market, I am sure that the crime rate is going to be going up for quite a while!  I can imagine that the companies that sell Home Security Systems will be doing a pretty hefty business in the upcoming months!

If you find yourself in the market for a security system, I suggest that you take some time to research which will be the Best Home Security Surveillance System for you.  Make sure that it has the features that you need and want.  Shop around before signing any contracts – as always, buyer beware!

I’ve been wondering if glucosamine really works to help ease joint pain. Teri’s dance teacher told her that she thinks it’s great! Teri has been complaining lately about her spine and knees bothering her, so we decided to go ahead and try some out. Teri bought some yesterday at the local pharmacy – they were buy one bottle, get one bottle free. She was careful to look at the ingredient list because some of the glucosamine products are made from beef and pork, and she was concerned about exposure to mad cow disease. So she made sure that the type that she bought was only made from shellfish. Come to think of it, I’ll have to make sure to NOT let my mother try it – she’s allergic to shellfish!

Anyway, we started on the pills yesterday. I wonder how long it will be before we notice any difference! Do you have any experience with this stuff? I’d love to hear how long it took for you to notice any difference!

I can remember a time when all television was free.  You didn’t need anything more than an antenna on the roof with a motorized rotor and you got all the channels you could possibly want – the three national networks and PBS.  Who needed anything more than that?  Then cable television came to town, touting the benefits of being able to watch television without having to watch any commercials! 

I didn’t know anyone who bought into cable then – who in their right mind would pay for television when they could get it for free?  Now it seems that everyone I know is paying for television in one form or the other.  Either a satellite service like Direct TV, or a cable company.  When we first moved into this house, there was a regular antenna on the roof, and we tried it out, but the reception was really bad.  We couldn’t get much more than snow and sound!

So, we asked our neighbors what television service they used, and we were surprised how evenly split they were – some recommending the Direct T V service, and some recommending the cable company.  The people who recommended the DirectTV were the people who were heavily interested in sports and movies.

What about your neighborhood?  What do your neighbors use?

I was just looking at a MSN article on the Internet about Do’s and Don’ts at the beach. One of the “Do” items encouraged women to wear white bikinis on the beach if they were lined. That brought back memories of a funny story that my mother told me about when she was about sixteen years old and engaged to a minister. She was visiting his family at the beach (I don’t know what beach) and for some reason she was wearing a white bathing suit. She went into the water to go swimming, and when she came out of the water her beau’s mother freaked out and ran to her, covering her up with a towel. Her white swimsuit had become transparent and wasn’t hiding anything at all! Of course, she was mortified at the time, but laughs about it now!