I Need a Va-CAT-ion, too!

Hi. Mattie here. It is 2.8 degrees outside. I just want you to know, I dream of a warm sandy beach just as much as Mike and Tracy.

National Chili Day

Well, today is National Chili Day! As I've said in the past, I don't make this stuff up. There really is a day devoted to this yummy belly-filler. Looking around the web I see that I am not the only chili lover. The International Chili Society has a great webpage. The history of chili is a unknown, but who cares about the past when you can have some now! Check out some of the recipes I found:

• ICS Cooks Corner: includes the "best chili of the year" and its corresponding recipe back to 1967
• Tabasco Company's chili recipes
• Food Blog Search

I am really jonesing for chili now. If I've made you hungry, you just might be in luck if you live in DC, Virginia or Maryland. Hard Times Cafe is giving away free bowls of chili today.

FoodBlogSearch.com

You probably know this about me, it isn't a dirty little secret... I love looking at recipes. Finding the ones that are both special and within my skill level is my goal. When I do find them, I tuck them away for future use. I'm the kind of person who cooks the same thing again even though I am always looking for something new.

My favorite food blog is Simply Recipes. It's author, Elise Bauer, creates all kinds of delicious things that even I can cook. Among my favorites is her Roast Turkey recipe. I also follow some other foodie blogs: Kalyn's Kitchen (a great resource for low carb options), Chocolate & Zucchini (beyond my skills but fun to read), Tea & Cookies (but the entries are generally too long for me to read thoroughly), David Lebovitz (another French cooking site), and some others... But, me being me, I am always hungry for more.



That's why Simply Recipe's blog on Saturday really "spoke" to me. The topic: a new search engine that specializes in food blogs, Food Blog Search (conveniently at http://foodblogsearch.com/). The search engine scours over 1900 food blogs to find recipes that meet your criteria. Here are some examples of how robust the tool is. Say you have Salmon in the refrigerator and you don't know how you feel like preparing it. You look around the kitchen and you also have some fresh dill and some mustard... Hmmm, what can you do with all that? Just go to Food Blog Search and type in salmon dill mustard; results are returned using those ingredients. Those are pretty specific ingredients; what if you do a search for something a little more general? Your family likes meatloaf, but you would like to come up with a new variation. Type in meatloaf and you get hundreds of results back. My mouth is watering just thinking about it!

I love having more options! Yummy...

Sign of the Seven Trilogy (Nora Roberts)

I finished reading Blood Brothers (by Nora Roberts) a couple of days ago. I read it because both Deb and my mom had great things to say about the book ("Couldn't put it down", "Really good", etc...). I, too, enjoyed this supernatural story of three friends whose 10th birthday changes their lives forever. It was well written (and who cares if it is believable) and I am anxious for the second installment, The Hollow, to come out in May. If you are looking for an interesting story, I think this is a good one.

I mentioned in January that I was getting ready to read Born in Death (J.D. Robb). I enjoyed it. Eve helped her friend Mavis deliver her baby, which was very sweet. I also finished Beverly Hills Dead (Stuart Woods) the next in a series set in 1940s Hollywood. For those of you who read Stuart Woods, you recognize Vance Calder, who appears in the Stone Barrington series [set in current time].

I am about half-way through What Looks Like Crazy (Charlotte Hughes). It is a cute story about a quirky psychologist whose life is as crazy as her patient's. It is a nice, uncomplicated read. I guess I'd call it Chick Lit. Hughes has a great sense of humor so it is very cute.

Up next will be Snowfall at Willow Lake (Susan Wiggs). Happy reading!

Happy Birthday, Smurfs!

We were listening to NPR on Thursday when we heard a familiar tune: "La la la la la la, la la la la laaaa..." The theme song from the Smurfs! The NPR segment was about the Smurfs turning 50. Yes, that is right, 50 years old! I am one of those little children who got up on Saturday mornings and excitedly awaited the newest show on the Smurfs. What would that mean Gargamel be up to next (and hey, have you noticed the similarity in appearance between Azrael and Mattie?)? How would Papa Smurf save the day?

The Smurfs have quite a following. Their Wiki page is pretty well defined, as is the Wiki page of Smurf characters (who knew there were so many?!). My day was complete when I found the Smurf Name Generator (not kidding -- you have to do this it is sooo funny). I am Baby Cakes Smurf... Too cute!

I just love these strolls down memory lane! Have a happy day :)

Happy 60th!

Wedding anniversaries are such a beautiful thing. The celebration of love and commitment cannot be (should not be) unappreciated. For those of us early into our marriages -- 8, 10, 15 years -- we are surprised when we look back at how quickly time has passed. I can't imagine how I will feel when Mike and I reach 60 years!

Today my grandparents celebrate their 60th anniversary. The mark of 60 years of partnership, good times, bad times, births, deaths, vacations, celebrations, and much more, is such a blessed event. I am so happy for my grandparents' celebration, and I am thankful for their good health. I hold dear many special memories of my time with them.

For my own knowledge, I looked up the traditional and modern anniversary gifts...

Anniversary	Traditional Gift	Modern Gift
1st	Paper	Clock
2nd	Cotton	China
3rd	Leather	Crystal/Glass
4th	Fruit/Flowers	Appliances (huh?)
5th	Wood	Silverware
6th	Candy/Iron	Wood
7th	Wool/Copper	Desk Sets
8th	Bronze/Pottery	Linens/Lace
9th	Pottery/Willow	Leather
10th	Tin/Aluminum	Diamond Jewelry
11th	Steel	Fashion Jewelry
12th	Silk/Linen	Pearls
13th	Lace	Textiles/Furs
14th	Ivory	Gold Jewelry
15th	Crystal	Watches
20th	China	Platinum
25th	Silver	Silver
30th	Pearl	Diamond
35th	Coral	Jade
40th	Ruby	Ruby
45th	Sapphire	Sapphire
50th	Gold	Gold
55th	Emerald	Emerald
60th	Diamond	Diamond

First, some of these gifts are weird. A desk set? Does that mean computer? Anyway... I think it is interesting how many times diamond appears in the modern list, and wonder what is says about relationships today... I'll leave that alone :)

Happy Anniversary, Grandpa and Grandma! You give us a great example to follow.

The Ease of Internet Radio

Ok, I admit it... I love a good deal! Getting something for a discount always makes me feel good. Getting something for free is even better. And the best thing I have found lately is Pandora. Pandora is free internet radio. That alone is nice, but what makes it really cool is that Pandora is part of the Music Genome Project (mgp). What's that? Pandora describes it as:

Pandora is based on the Music Genome Project, the most sophisticated taxonomy of musical information ever collected. It represents over seven years of analysis by our trained team of musicologists, and spans almost a century of music (and soon several centuries!).

Each song in the Music Genome Project is analyzed using up to 400 distinct musical characteristics by a trained music analyst. These attributes capture not only the musical identity of a song, but also the many significant qualities that are relevant to understanding the musical preferences of listeners. The typical music analyst working on the Music Genome Project has a four-year degree in music theory, composition or performance, has passed through a selective screening process and has completed intensive training in the Music Genome's rigorous and precise methodology. To qualify for the work, analysts must have a firm grounding in music theory, including familiarity with a wide range of styles and sounds. All analysis is done on location.

The Music Genome Project's database is built using a methodology that includes the use of precisely defined terminology, a consistent frame of reference, redundant analysis, and ongoing quality control to ensure that data integrity remains reliably high. Pandora does not use machine-listening or other forms of automated data extraction.

The Music Genome Project is updated on a continual basis with the latest releases, emerging artists, and an ever-deepening collection of catalogue titles.

By utilizing the wealth of musicological information stored in the Music Genome Project, Pandora recognizes and responds to each individual's tastes. The result is a much more personalized radio experience - stations that play music you'll love - and nothing else.

So you ask, "How does it work?" You go to http://www.pandora.com and enter the name of an artist or song. Pandora locates that song (or in some cases, a song with similar characteristics) in its database and begins playing it. The neat part comes with the next song in the queue. It is selected based on similar musical characteristics to the first song you picked (this is where mgp comes in). If you don't like a song, just give it a thumbs down; Pandora moves to the next song. Two thumbs for the same artist in one hour will ban that artist from the virtual station you create. When you like a song, give it a thumbs up. The characteristics of that song will help determine other songs that will play on your virtual station. A no vote is neutral.

The site offers other cool things as well. Clicking on an album cover gets you choices. You can find out about the song, artist, or album. If you like the song you can buy it directly from iTunes or Amazon. The access to information is broad and user-friendly. For example, I clicked on album information on Another Run Around the Sun (by Ben Taylor). I was surprised to learn the album was produced by Kevin Bacon. As we know, there is the "7 degrees of Kevin Bacon" in all that we do, but I digress.

Want to know if any of your friends are using Pandora? There is a nice feature that lets you connect to your address book (in AOL, Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoo, etc...) and search for friends who also have an account. You can then check or uncheck friends you want to add. When I did this, I found our dear friends Todd & Carolyn are using Pandora. Once my friends are added I can see their most recent stations and their most recent bookmarks. Cool!

There are many more features the site offers. It would take many words to describe them all, and I think you'd have a better time exploring yourself. So, I'll leave you to it...

If you get hooked on Pandora like I am, you may decide that you don't want to have to keep your browser open all the time. I use a light application called Open Pandora. It connects to you Pandora account in a stand-alone window. Many of the Pandora Extras (friends, album/song/artist info, etc...) is not available in Open Pandora but you can still vote on songs and create new stations.

If you're interested in how we learned about Pandora, the story is simple. Mike and I were going through the Start Menu and Installed Programs on his new computer to determine which bloatware to remove. We googled each item that wasn't familiar. Pandora was on the All Programs list... We looked it up and were hooked.

Smiles!

Confessions of a NetFlix Convert

Ok, it is time for the truth to be told. We did try Netflix for a few months some time ago. I thought it was very convenient. My DH worried about the cost. What about the weeks on end we may go without viewing a movie?

Along came PeerFlix and we thought, "Here's the answer!" We signed up and started making money right away. We sold our old movies (that we'd never watch again) and watched our balance climb. We used the money we made selling videos to purchase used ones from other members. It was paradise, at least for a while. In our first three months of membership, we spent under $14 in out-of-pocket costs. What are out-of-pocket costs? For simplicity in calculation, I consider them to be transaction and shipping fees (about $1.55/movie) and the money we spend on new movies from a big box store ~~ after the money we make from selling them (thus the difference between what we spent and what we earned). The out-of-pocket does not include the cost of the movies, which came out of our positive balance earned by selling.

The blissful harmony began to break down when problems came along... Some discs didn't arrive for weeks -- literally, weeks -- on end. One disc was an obvious pirate. I had a seller never send a disc, had to wait 5 weeks for a refund, then when the order was automatically bid out, the same guy got it again... I had to resort to a stern message to finally get the movie. No help from the site in stepping in on the issue. Other problems occurred when I received broken discs... I'd wait weeks to get discs, they would arrive broken, then I had to send them off to the site for verification and refund. The breaking point came when we were getting nearly no discs from our Wish List. We had to go to the store to buy movies to see. During our last month, we spent a whopping $26 on movies.

The cost argument had lost out along with my patience. On Thursday I did a side-by-side cost comparison and decided that NetFlix would be a better deal. By 11 am on Friday I had entered my PeerFlix Wish List into my NetFlix Queue, transferred over 70 movie ratings, and had my first two movies on their way. Easy Peasy. Oh, did I mention the movies actually played (another PeerFlix issue)?!

The experiment using PeerFlix was interesting, though a disappointment in some ways. For selling, it is a great tool. We will continue to use it for that purpose. However, for viewing movies, NetFlix will be our service of choice.

If you have a NetFlix account and want to be our friend (awww, how sweet!) The account is in my email -- which all that read this probably have. Also, I've posted our queue on the left sidebar (NetFlix icon and Movie Wish List). I did it using a cool thing from Inky Software. You can, too. Here's how: 1) Go into your NetFlix account, at the bottom of any page is a link to RSS. 2) Click the RSS link and see the list of feeds tied to your account. Pay particular note to Queue, Recent Rental Activity, and Movies At Home. I like Movies at Home for Mike so he can pick between the two we have in house for movie descriptions. 3) Add a link to an email message, blog, or website by copying and pasting
http://www.inkysoftware.com/rss2html.php?XMLFILE=
then pasting the link from your account (right click and copy for the RSS feed) afterwards. So, for my recent rental activity I have: http://www.inkysoftware.com/rss2html.php?XMLFILE=http://rss.netflix.com/TrackingRSS?id=P2020156977401916652848461628686461 . And for my movies at home I have http://www.inkysoftware.com/rss2html.php?XMLFILE=http://rss.netflix.com/AtHomeRSS?id=P2020156977401916652848461628686461. It is a fun and easy way to share what you are watching.

Have fun!

Spaghetto Article in N Magazine

The newest issue of N Magazine (27.3) should be out on the newstands (or in your mailbox) in the coming days. Keep an eye out for our article on Spaghetto in the Ghetto. You'll see Mike pictured as one of the cooks. For a text only version of the article, click here.

Happy Valentine's Day ~~~ FROM MATTIE!

Well, I'll tell you. I am feeling a bit left out. Mom and Dad made their own special Valentine's greeting, but what about me?! I love all you guys, too! So, I just took care of it myself this morning.

Happy Valentine's Day!

Love, Mattie

(Addendum by Tracy) In an effort to make peace with my beloved cat, I have updated our family photo. Sorry, Mattie. We love you, too. Meow ;)

Happy Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day, from our hearts to yours...

Roses

I have been listening to a fund drive this week on NPR that will get listeners a dozen roses at Winston Flowers. I couldn't help but happily remember the Vera Wang flowers Mike got me last Valentine's Day. He is such a sweetheart :)

Love Poem

Continuing with our Valentine's theme this week, below is a poem about love... (Credit to http://www.poetryamerica.com/read_poems.asp?id=355174)

What is love
© By John Stoner

Love is scary
Love is funny
Love is worth more than money

Love can be frank
Love is blunt
Love is something you can't hunt

Love is messy
Love is chaotic
Love is like a cheap narcotic

Love is hard
Love is great
Love can keep you up real late

Love is simple
Love is blind
Love can really cloud your mind

Love is strong
Love is pure
Love is something very obscure

Love is hard
Love is easy
Love can make you stomach queasy

Love is ordinary
Love is exotic
Love can make one quite erotic

Love is fantastic
Love is tremendous
Loving someone is stupendous

Love is slow
Love is fast
Love is something meant to last

Love is me
Love is you
Love is something to pursue

Smiles!

Valentine's Day is Approaching

A vintage card by Esther Howland, circa 1875

Now that the Christmas celebrations have passed and we are recovered from sending and receiving cards, Valentine's Day is upon us. I thought it would be fun to read about the origins of Valentine's Day and share them with you.

Apparently, there have been several martyrs in the Catholic church with the name Valentine. Both Valentine of Rome and Valentine of Terni lived and died before AD 300 and are buried in different parts of Via Flaminia. They are the Valentines that are officially honored on February 14. According to Wikipedia, 11 Valentine's Day were recognized by the Catholic church until 1969.

University of Kansas professor Jack Oruch argues that there was no link between romanticism and Valentine's Day until Geoffrey Chaucer wrote the Parliament of Foules in 1382. The poem was written to honor the first anniversary of the engagement of King Richard II to Anne of Bohemia (both young babes at the ages of 13 and 14).

Valentine's Day was reinvented in the 1840s. The first mass-produced cards were created by Esther Howland (of Worcester, MA) around 1847. Her influence was so great that the Greeting Card Association began giving the "Esther Howland Award for a Greeting Card Visionary" annually in 2001. We all know the effect of her mass-produced cards on the industry today; an estimated 1 billion Valentine's Day cards are sent, 85% being purchased by women.

More authentic Valentine's Day cards can be found at http://www.emotionscards.com/museum/vals.html.

Finally, MY Turn!

Well, this blog thing has been up and running for a while now. You've seen my name at the top -- Mattie -- right? But I haven't gotten to post yet. I have been meowing and meowing trying to tell Tracy that it is my turn on the computer. She didn't get it. She'd say "You have food. You have water. You just went outside. Why are you meowing." Took her long enough to understand :)

Anyway, I have a good strip from my favorite guy Garfield. We look like brothers, you know.

Time for a Smile

Looking at the posts for the past couple of days, I see I've been very serious. It is time for a fun diversion! Have a shot at the fun quiz below: "What Are You Looking For In Life?" Have fun!

Read Labels for Phenylpropanolamine (PPA)

Yesterday I received the following warning about Phenylpropanolamine from my friend Deb. She had gotten it as part of a web newsletter from her health insurer.

FDA Recalls Weight Loss Drugs and Cold Medicines

All drugs containing PHENYLPROPANOLAMINE are being recalled.
It is advised to stop taking anything containing this ingredient. It has been
linked to increased hemorrhagic stroke (bleeding in brain) among women ages 18-49 in the three days after starting use of medication. Problems were not found in men, but the FDA recommends that everyone (even children) seek alternative medicine.

The following medications contain Phenylpropanolamine:

Acutrim Diet Gum Appetite Suppressant
Acutrim Plus Dietary Supplements
Acutrim Maximum Strength Appetite Control
Alka-Seltzer Plus Children's Cold Medicine Effervescent
Alka-Seltzer Plus Cold medicine (cherry or or ange)
Alka-Seltzer Plus Cold Medicine Original
Alka-Seltzer Plus Cold & Cough Medicine Effervescent
Alka-Seltzer Plus Cold & Flu Medicine
Alka-Seltzer Plus Cold & Sinus Effervescent
Alka Seltzer Plus Night-Time Cold Medicine
BC Allergy Sinus Cold Powder
BC Sinus Cold Powder
Comtrex Flu Therapy & Fever Relief
Day & Night Contac 12-Hour Cold Capsules
Contac 12 Hour Caplets
Coricidin D Cold, Flu &Sinus
Dexatrim Caffeine Free
Dexatrim Extended Duration
Dexatrim Gelcaps
Dexatrim Vitamin C/Caffeine Free
Dimetapp Cold & Allergy Chewable Tablets
Dimetapp Cold & Cough Liqui-Gels
Dimetapp DM Cold & Cough Elixir
Dimetapp Elixir
Dimetapp 4 Hour L iquid Gels
Dimetapp 4 Hour Tablets
Dimetapp 12 Hour Extentabs Tablets
Naldecon DX Pediatric Drops
Permathene Mega-16
Robitussin CF
Tavist-D 12 Hour Relief of Sinus & Nasal Congestion
Triaminic DM Cough Relief
Triaminic Expectorant Chest &Head
Triaminic Syrup Cold & Allergy
Triaminic Triaminicol Cold & Cough

Also, Triaminic said they are voluntarily recalling the following medicines because of a certain ingredient that is causing strokes and seizures in children:

· Orange 3D Cold &Allergy Cherry (Pink)

· 3D Cold &Cough Berry

· 3D Cough Relief Yellow 3D Expectorant

Source: http://www.fda , http://www.fda.gov/cder/drug/infopage/ppa

I was alarmed by the report and begin investigating. PPA has been around for decades. Reports of hemorrhagic strokes to women who took PPA began in the 1970s. Even though the FDA question the safety of PPA for 20 years, drug manufacturers argued its safety. Finally, drug manufacturers and FDA agreed to a study to be conducted by an independent research outfit. The 1999 study by Yale School of Medicine confirmed that PPA caused a significant increased risk of hemorrhagic stroke in people who use it, especially women. The FDA advised drug manufacturers to stop making PPA in 2000. In 2005 the FDA removed PPA from over-the-counter sale. The drug is still available for dogs.

What does this mean for me?

Just to be clear (and I know everyone knows this already), I am not a medical expert. I have no capacity to advise people about drugs. The action I am taking on PPA is to look at the active and inactive ingredients on all drugs in my medicine cabinet. Though PPA should only be in old drugs that should have expired and been disposed of long ago, I want to be sure Mike and I are safe.

New drugs should not contain PPA. The ones I checked contained Phenylephrine, the most common over-the-counter decongestant. Read the labels, be safe, and be healthy.

For further reading:
Case Study of Lawsuits, by Richard Clapp
Doubt is Their Product, by David Michaels
Phenylpropanolamine, Wikipedia
Phenylephrine, Wikipedia

Our Oppurtunity to Be Heard

Democracy (as defined in Merriam Webster online)

Main Entry:

de·moc·ra·cy

Pronunciation:

\di-ˈmä-krə-sē\

Function:

noun

Inflected Form(s):

plural de·moc·ra·cies

Etymology:

Middle French democratie, from Late Latin democratia, from Greek dēmokratia,

from dēmos + -kratia -cracy

Date:

1576

1 a: government by the people; especially : rule of the majority b: a government in
which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised by them directly or
indirectly through a system of representation usually involving periodically held free
elections

Today is Super Tuesday. If you are a resident of any one of the 24 states (mapped below), today is your opportunity to make your voice heard.

This election, affecting about 1/2 of the states in our country, will have a large impact in deciding the Democratic and Republican nominees on the ballot in November.

I hope everyone takes a stand and votes today. If you haven't committed to a candidate yet, CNN is a great resource for information about nominees. It has a special Super Tuesday Guide that gives information state-by-state.

Well...

The game was good last night, right down to the wire. I'm pretty disappointed -- for the Patriots players because they really wanted the win -- about the loss. Hmpfh.

Let's Go Patriots!!!

Superbowl XLII is upon us, New England Patriots vs. New York Giants. C'mon, let's get over these Mannings. Brady is THE man. You know who we'll be cheering for. Wouldn't it be a sweet dual win, the Sox for the World Series, and the Pats for the Superbowl. Just like 2004.



WOO HOO PATRIOTS!!!!

There Are Many Little Things We Can Do to Save the Earth

I just got a fabulous new book by Joanne Yarrow called 1,001 Ways to Save the Earth (I purchased mine at Uncommon Goods; the link for the book is directly from the publisher; you can also purchase from Amazon). It has all kinds of things we can do to help save our planet. Many of the tips are so easy to accomplish. Mike and I are doing several of the things she mentions already.

Here are a few of the ones I found particularly interesting (all are quoted directly from the book, my thoughts are italicized):
Tip #55

A more seductive candlelight Traditional paraffin-wax candles are petroleum based. Once lit, they emit toxins such as acetone, benzene, lead, and mercury into the air. Beeswax and soy candles, by contrast, are toxin free. Not only do they provide a healthier atmosphere for romantic dinners for two, but the pleasant experience will last longer, as these natural candles burn for 50 percent longer than synthetic ones. (My notes: There are lots of pretty handmade soy and beeswax candles on Etsy)

Tip #62

Glug down some organic milk If you're trying to "go organic," milk is a good place to start. The price difference is marginal, but the health benefits are significant: organic milk contains much high levels of nutrients - for example, up to two-thirds more omega 3 essential fatty acids - than intensively farmed milk.

Tip #95

Little helpers Put your children in charge of some green tasks around the home - such as checking that lights and appliances are switched off, looking after the composting, or feeding the birds - and reward them for doing well. Find something they enjoy, and the habits are likely to last a lifetime.

Tip #132

Unplugged Electronic applicances can consume almost as much energy during the time they're in standby mode as they do during the relatively small portion of the day when they're actively being used. Unplugging electronic equipment can cut your household electricity bill by up to 10 percent. This is particularly important in the case of pieces of digital equipment, which often use more energy than their analogue equivalents. (My notes: Check out a great system called Bye Bye Standbye. The kit includes two outlet converters and a remote for $34.95. You can add onto the system (additional kits are most effective and you get another remote). I am really trying to sell Mike on this one -- I think it would be great)

Tip #156

Bamboo bathrobe Bizarre though it sounds, tough bamboo fiber makes luxuriously soft towels. Bamboo is three times more absorbent than cotton and boasts antibacterial, antistatic, and antifungal properties. It grows quickly and without need for pesticides, which makes it a fantastically eco-friendly material. Ask any panda! (My notes: Consumer Reports agrees with the benefits of bamboo. They reviewed four different bamboo/cotton blend towels and rated them in this order: Land's End Cotton/Bamboo [score 73], Lenox Platinum Collection [score 67], cb2 Crate & Barrel Bamboo [score 65] and The Bombay Company Estate ***now out of business [score 62]. I just got the Lenox Platinum Collection at considerable savings on Amazon, using their 4-for-3 sale. I got 4 $20 towels for $60 (with one free).

Tip #172

Say no to junk mail Protect your home and office from an avalanche of junk mail by registering with a mail preference service. (My notes: I used Direct Marketing Association's Mail Preference Services to remove our names from mailing lists and prospect lists. It was free, though they did require a credit card for identity verification. I also removed my name from pre-screened credit offers using OptOutPrescreen.)

I have only read through the first 250 tips in the book and have found that will be valuable for years to come. This book will definitely be a desktop top resource for me.

Completely Unrelated Addition

This is a completely unrelated post, but I have to add it. I got a message from Melissa with a link to this video and it is so great, I can barely contain myself. Enjoy!