The title got ya huh? 

Fooled you. We are gonna talk about nuts but that is about as far as I’m gonna go…up to you to use your creative mind if you choose. :)

I am a peanut butter nut; nothing out of the jar, thank you. I like mine freshly ground from Whole foods.  However, there  are a few brands that I like straight from the jar but skippy & Jif are not one of them. So when I got a little email didley from a company ‘Spread’ who specializes in nut butters mixed with all sorts of things, I just had to check them out.

If I like a product I have no problem blogging it and ‘spreading’ the word.  However, the same goes for products that I feel are ripping off the general public.  And this is one of them…

I went to their website and perused the different flavors.  I did notice the price but what I didn’t notice was how much one got for that price.  Never do they once mention how big the jars are – now I know why. These little jars and I stress the word ‘little’, some only holding 4 servings worth, a serving being 2 tablespoons, is a whopping $10.50! You do the math.  For that price, they better be good for something else – a facial, or an eatable lubricant perhaps? Ha! Ha! – Okay, I lied. I took it a wee bit farther – couldn’t resist. 

Ahem…Back to the nuts…Well…once again, let me tell you marketing is everything. They call themselves ‘Style Peanut Spreads’, and ‘Trend Almond Spreads’, a ‘Nouveau Comfort Food’…yeah, for the nouveau riche – the only ones who could afford it let alone even consider buying it at that price. They claim, ‘The celebs drooled over these at the 2007 Emmy awards!’ It was the ‘must have’ hollywood gift over the holidays. Oh well, in that case, I’m convinced.  I must get myself some since NOW they are available to us regular folks for the first time.  Blah, blah ,blah, no thank you. 

Years ago I developed my own soy nut butter that my friends drooled over…they weren’t celebs but they all tried to convince me to go into business with my delicious concoctions.  I had some pretty tasty little flavors too….Hmmm, did I miss my calling?  Nah…I think I’ll spread my own and call it a day. Yum.   

Spreadin’ yours?  Have a delicious time!

Gratefully your blog host,

michelle  ?

For archives dated before January 17, 2008  click on my Blogroll:  

or click here: “A Day in the life of…” 

All content on this site are property of Michelle Moquin © copyright 2008

“ Politics, god, Life, News, Music, Family, Personal, Travel, Random, Photography, Religion, Aliens, Art, Entertainment, Food, Books, Thoughts, Media, Culture, Love, Sex, Poetry, Prose, Friends, Technology, Humor, Health, Writing, Events, Movies, Sports, Video, Christianity, Atheist, Blogging, History, Work, Education, Business, Fashion, Barack Obama, People, Internet, Relationships, Faith, Photos, Videos, Hillary Clinton, School, Reviews, God, TV, Philosophy, Fun, Science, Environment, Design, The Page, Rants, Pictures, Church, Blog, Nature, Marketing, Television, Democrats, Parenting, Miscellaneous, Current Events, Film, Spirituality, Obama, Musings, Home, Human Rights, Society, Comedy, Me, Random Thoughts, Research, Government, Election 2008, Baseball, Opinion, Recipes, Children, Iraq, Funny, Women, Economics, America, Misc, Commentary, John McCain, Reflections, All, Celebrities, Inspiration, Lifestyle, Theology, Linux, Kids, Games, World, India, Literature, China, Ramblings, Fitness, Money, Review, War, Articles, Economy, Journal, Quotes, NBA, Crime, Anime, Islam, 2008, Stories, Prayer, Diary, Jesus, Buddha, Muslim, Israel, Europe, Links, Marriage, Fiction, American Idol, Software, Leadership, Pop culture, Rants, Video Games, Republicans, Updates, Political, Football, Healing, Blogs, Shopping, USA, Class, Matrix, Course, Work, Web 2.0, My Life, Psychology, Gay, Happiness, Advertising, Field Hockey, Hip-hop, sex, fucking, ass, Soccer, sox“

The title got ya huh? 

Fooled you. We are gonna talk about nuts but that is about as far as I’m gonna go…up to you to use your creative mind if you choose. :)

I am a peanut butter nut; nothing out of the jar, thank you. I like mine freshly ground from Whole foods.  However, there  are a few brands that I like straight from the jar but skippy & Jif are not one of them. So when I got a little email didley from a company ‘Spread’ who specializes in nut butters mixed with all sorts of things, I just had to check them out.

If I like a product I have no problem blogging it and ‘spreading’ the word.  However, the same goes for products that I feel are ripping off the general public.  And this is one of them…

I went to their website and perused the different flavors.  I did notice the price but what I didn’t notice was how much one got for that price.  Never do they once mention how big the jars are – now I know why. These little jars and I stress the word ‘little’, some only holding 4 servings worth, a serving being 2 tablespoons, is a whopping $10.50! You do the math.  For that price, they better be good for something else – a facial, or an eatable lubricant perhaps? Ha! Ha! – Okay, I lied. I took it a wee bit farther – couldn’t resist. 

Ahem…Back to the nuts…Well…once again, let me tell you marketing is everything. They call themselves ‘Style Peanut Spreads’, and ‘Trend Almond Spreads’, a ‘Nouveau Comfort Food’…yeah, for the nouveau riche – the only ones who could afford it let alone even consider buying it at that price. They claim, ‘The celebs drooled over these at the 2007 Emmy awards!’ It was the ‘must have’ hollywood gift over the holidays. Oh well, in that case, I’m convinced.  I must get myself some since NOW they are available to us regular folks for the first time.  Blah, blah ,blah, no thank you. 

Years ago I developed my own soy nut butter that my friends drooled over…they weren’t celebs but they all tried to convince me to go into business with my delicious concoctions.  I had some pretty tasty little flavors too….Hmmm, did I miss my calling?  Nah…I think I’ll spread my own and call it a day. Yum.   

Spreadin’ yours?  Have a delicious time!

Gratefully your blog host,

michelle  ?

For archives dated before January 17, 2008  click on my Blogroll:  

or click here: “A Day in the life of…” 

All content on this site are property of Michelle Moquin © copyright 2008

“ Politics, god, Life, News, Music, Family, Personal, Travel, Random, Photography, Religion, Aliens, Art, Entertainment, Food, Books, Thoughts, Media, Culture, Love, Sex, Poetry, Prose, Friends, Technology, Humor, Health, Writing, Events, Movies, Sports, Video, Christianity, Atheist, Blogging, History, Work, Education, Business, Fashion, Barack Obama, People, Internet, Relationships, Faith, Photos, Videos, Hillary Clinton, School, Reviews, God, TV, Philosophy, Fun, Science, Environment, Design, The Page, Rants, Pictures, Church, Blog, Nature, Marketing, Television, Democrats, Parenting, Miscellaneous, Current Events, Film, Spirituality, Obama, Musings, Home, Human Rights, Society, Comedy, Me, Random Thoughts, Research, Government, Election 2008, Baseball, Opinion, Recipes, Children, Iraq, Funny, Women, Economics, America, Misc, Commentary, John McCain, Reflections, All, Celebrities, Inspiration, Lifestyle, Theology, Linux, Kids, Games, World, India, Literature, China, Ramblings, Fitness, Money, Review, War, Articles, Economy, Journal, Quotes, NBA, Crime, Anime, Islam, 2008, Stories, Prayer, Diary, Jesus, Buddha, Muslim, Israel, Europe, Links, Marriage, Fiction, American Idol, Software, Leadership, Pop culture, Rants, Video Games, Republicans, Updates, Political, Football, Healing, Blogs, Shopping, USA, Class, Matrix, Course, Work, Web 2.0, My Life, Psychology, Gay, Happiness, Advertising, Field Hockey, Hip-hop, sex, fucking, ass, Soccer, sox“

Some of you may or may not know that I have been in the fashion business for about 20 years now, designing everything from men’s clothing to women’s lingerie. My latest venture was women’s pajamas which I designed for about 5 years. I had the good fortune of having two of my best selling pajamas featured in the Oscar gift bags in 2004.  That coup boosted my sales allowing me to seek manufacturing overseas.  Yep, I outsourced.  I didn’t want to but I needed to, to be price competitive.  

I also took my first trip to Vietnam on United Airlines Inaugural flight in search of a manufacturing contractor. It was the first time in 30 years since the Vietnam war ( the Vietnamese call it the American war), that an American airline flew direct to Vietnam.  And since San Francisco is the sister city to Vietnam, the flight left from there. It was a huge celebratory event that the City of San Francisco was sponsoring and I was one of 30 or so delegates representing San Francisco.   Most of the other delegates were Vietnamese living in San Francisco and whom had not seen their home country since they escaped during war times.  And a handful of people working for the city which included some very interesting people who had at one time worked in the White House for the Clinton administration.  It was one of my most memorable travels and certainly one of my most successful business moves.  

While I was in Vietnam, everything fell into place.  It was all very serendipitous.  I was interviewed the day I arrived, “A famous clothing designer flies in for America.” I was featured in their most popular newspaper, Tuôi tré, the very next day.  During my stay I met with whom you could call the Victoria Secret of Asia, a major Vietnamese/Japanese lingerie company.  We had several meeting that led to a 5-year licensing contract with them.   As proud as I was that I single handedly negotiated a contract, it took a year to complete and sign and even longer for them to get any of my samples made. Unfortunately it  is pretty much dead in the water now – The ball is in their court, but  I considered it a wonderful experience and I learned a ton.

So I am off to bigger and better things…something new. Who knows what but definitely something in the creative realm.  

So why am I telling you all of this?  Well….I am selling off my pajama samples and my last production. There isn’t a ton left thankfully but enough to fit a small room and quite frankly I am ready to purge…you know with the move and all.  So I am letting my beautiful designs go for a very reasonable  price – all are available for less than wholesale and some items as low as $20!  My good friend Rita is throwing a pajama party for me this afternoon at her house for about 30 or so women.  It should be a fun and successful event. 

I usually don’t tout myself or my  ’wears’ but I thought you, my dear readers would love a heads up on my big sale. So…if any of you love pajamas you would probably love a pair of mine.  Blog me if you are interested. You can view some of the styles at my pajama website. And if for some reason, you have a difficult time blogging me, try emailing me.  My email address is on this blog or go to my website and you”ll find my email there too. 

Doug, Al, ZL:  Thanks for the interesting comments yesterday – Doug you really jumped on the research. – good info. Thanks.   

Enjoy the day! 

Gratefully your blog host,

michelle  ?

For archives dated before January 17, 2008  click on my Blogroll:  

or click here: “A Day in the life of…” 

All content on this site are property of Michelle Moquin © copyright 2008

 www.time.com/time/specials/ 2007/environment/a...

It is that time of year again when nuptials are in the works.  Whether is is your first, second, or ‘who’s counting?’ wedding ceremony, how about doing it the modern way and going green? Yes, eco-friendly can apply here too. 

The Invitations:  Saving trees doesn’t mean that you have to sacrifice style.  ‘Earthly Affair‘, takes our earth into account.  They print on FSC- certified cotton or 100% post-consumer paper.  So you know those 250+ invites aren’t going to be responsible for cutting down one tree in honor of your day – now that is cool.  They offer a wonderful selection of fonts, colors, and design choices, and you can do everything on-line.  

Conflict-free Diamonds:  Let your ring sparkle brilliantly – no blood diamonds here.  You can wear it with a smile knowing that the gold is recycled and the stones are conflict-free.  Dawes Design will create the perfect ring for your wedding or any other occasion. 

Round two:  Sloppy seconds these are not! Encore Bridal or Bell’ancora offer once-worn wedding dresses from all of your favorite designers at a discount price, saving you money and saving the environment too. 

Bridesmaid bliss:  Tired of those hideous dresses in even more hideous colors? It is modern and chic to have your maids looking  lovely too. Adorn them in outfits that are not only flattering but sustainable too.   Earth & Sky  has what you are looking for.  And to complete the outfit: leather shoes are overrated, go for  vegan shoes from Té Casan.

Register Reality: And if you are truly going green for your big day then how about for life? Registering with a sustainable company too is a must for all of those new items for your home.   Check out these eco-friendly sites that offer items that are stylish and chic too: Branch and Global Table   are two of my favorites and if you are ever in need to find other products, suppliers etc., Greenopia: The Urban Dwellers Guide to Green Living, is a fabulous site to bookmark.

There you have it!  

Happy nuptials whatever number you are celebrating!

?????

Al:  I have been so wrapped up in my own stuff….I too wanted to say I am sorry about your mother passing so early…But I have to say, I agree…what a beautiful gift to be able to give to her. I would turn it into a positive and celebrate your birthday even more so knowing that she was released from her body…she gave life to you on that day and you gave it back in the freedom of formlessness.  I just have a feeling that she would want you to be happy on that day.  Just my little two cents.

ZL:  B had the deer antlers too – she despised them! :)

See you all tomorrow…

Gratefully your blog host,

michelle  ?

For archives dated before January 17, 2008  click on my Blogroll:  

or click here: “A Day in the life of…” 

All content on this site are property of Michelle Moquin © copyright 2008

Oh, I am happy it’s Friday!                                                        

Hmmm… No major subject today…just a few Friday tidbits that I wanted to share to get your weekend going in a safe and pleasurable way…  

It has been brought to my attention that there is a looming virus out there ready to strike and if you are like me, a heads-up on anything that might mess up my computer is at the top of my list.  Have you hear of ”POSTCARD’ ?  Yep, a new virus substantiated by Snopes, so you can warn all of your friends. It is real! So feel free to pass this along. Be alert for it today and the next coming days. Check out Snopes for all of the alias names that it may be sent under. 

Here’s the gist on it: 

Do not open any message with an attachment entitled ‘POSTCARD’, regardless of who sent it to you. It is a virus which opens A POSTCARD IMAGE, which ‘burns’ the whole hard disc C of your computer.

This virus will be received from someone who has your e-mail address in his/her contact list. This is the reason why you need to send this e-mail to all your contacts It is better to receive this message 25 times than to receive the virus and open it.

If you receive a mail called’ POSTCARD,’ even though sent to you by a friend, do not open it! Shut down your computer immediately.

This is the worst virus announced by CNN. It has been classified by Microsoft as the most destructive virus ever. This virus was discovered by McAfee yesterday, and there is no repair yet for this kind of virus. This virus simply destroys the Zero Sector of the Hard Disc, where the vital information is kept.

Oh and by the way…speaking of hard drives….I just got one of those portable external hard drives…not the USB Cruzer mini 1.0 GB…got one of those too – great for snapping up quick info….No this is a portable WD passport – 250GB – got it at Costco and I back-up my comp once a week. I highly recommend something like this. Great for traveling too.  Don’t want to carry your laptop? Just download this on anyone’s computer and it is like you are working on your own. Cool eh?

Le’ts see…what else? Oh yeah…Are you a wino?  I mean that in a good way. Maybe I should ask,  “Are you a wine lover, or maybe a wine connoisseur? Or at least you’d like to be?”  I have the perfect little didley for you. It’s called ‘Nirvino’ — I just love that name – says it all huh? Anyway, this is a new web-based mobile community of vinophiles that puts supreme wine wisdom right in the palm of your hand. That is if you’re one of those who has an iphone or some other PDA to download it to. I am not one of those but hey I still like the product and one can always sign up on-line – it’s easy and free. 

Here’s the gist on this:

The site’s omniscient rating system aggregates opinions, wine blog scores, and print reviews into a quantity of stars (five being the highest) for each wine in its database. The user-friendly format with brief descriptions helps you create a perfect pairing.

In a pinch at dinner for an albariño to drink with your tapas? Enter the restaurant’s contenders into the Nirvino mobile application on your handheld and it will expertly suggest the ideal vintage.

Monthly events for local members, sommeliers, chefs, and winemakers to share love of the vine will bring you one step closer to wine utopia.

Now this is a site Doug would love ’cause he is really into wine.  And I know ZL would too. How about you? Me? I love wine but I’m not a big drinker. However, it would be fun to use this when I’m racking my brain for a dinner party.  Could come in handy this weekend….

That’s it for today – Have a fab Friday folks! 

Gratefully your blog host,

michelle ?

For archives dated before January 17, 2008  click on my Blogroll:  

or click here: “A Day in the life of…” 

All content on this site are property of Michelle Moquin © copyright 2008