My First Uber

SxSW is all about new things and serendipity. Interesting conversations with complete strangers yield surprising new connections and discoveries. On the last day, I "discovered" Uber.

Of course, I'd heard of Uber, but I'd never had a reason or even the opportunity to try it. A random chat with the guys waiting for the shuttle found its way to the topic of Uber. Our fellow shuttler was a big fan and said he'd found himself regularly skipping the shuttle wait and just getting an Uber ride.

He was singing the praises of Uber, demoing the app, touting all its great features, and then suggested, "Hey, let's just take it. It's on me." What did we have to lose?

The app showed five Uber drivers near us. Our self-appointed Uber ambassador clicked a button and our ride was on the way. We saw the driver's name and car description along with an ETA. Three minutes later (no lie!) our ride was there.

The car was spotless and our driver seemed way safer than any cabbie I've ridden with. The final tab was $13.50. We hopped out, then rated the driver and paid through the app. No tipping and no card or cash needed. Bonus: similar cab rides were running folks $30.

My initial understanding of Uber basically being AirBnB for rides was spot on, and my first impression was very favorable. I'll definitely be downloading the app and looking for good opportunities to try it again, but only when I have my husband or another trusted rider in tow.  

New Year, New Food: Parsnips

With one rare exception (I'm giving the hairy eyeball to you, cauliflower) I have yet to meet a vegetable I didn't like. As a picky child, turned adventurous adult diner, I was beginning to wonder if I'd tried all the vegetables out there. Surely not.

Along came Whole Foods, OKC, and now a have a new source for some "exotic" produce you don't find in a small town Walmart. Enter the parsnip. I'd never tried this root veggie, but when it was highlighted in "Vegetarian Times" and "Runners World" in the same month, I decided to track one down and eat it.

Now, what the heck to do with a parsnip? I decided to toss it into a crockpot of root veggies (just like pot roast vegetables, sans roast). Here's the cast for our dinner: mushrooms, carrots, sweet potato, pearl onions, butternut squash, and one big ole parsnip (front and center).

In the store, it looks like a mutant, albino, zombie carrot. Here it is all cleaned up.

You clean up nice, little parsnip. I chopped it up and dumped into my crock pot with the other veggies.

The verdict: The parsnip fit right in with the other root veggies and friends. It tasted like a cross between a carrot and a white potato. It softened up much more than the carrots, though, so evidently parsnips don't need to cook for hours like most of the veggies in this dish.

What's the most "exotic" veggie you've tried? Was it a winner?

New Year, New Food: Tofurky

I've decided to try to liven up our menus and audition a few new foods. Today John and I tried Peppered Tofurky Deli Slices. Since we've gone 99% vegetarian, I haven't had a turkey sandwich in ages. I was eager to see how this meat substitute stacked up to my memory of the real thing.

Our lunch sandwiches had 5 slices of Tofurky, a slice of colby jack, half a packet of spicy Wholy Guacamole on whole grain sandwich rounds. John and I both gave the Tofurky a thumbs up.

It's certainly not a life-changing taste sensation, but regular ole deli meat isn't either. The texture was pretty good. If you didn't know you were eating faux meat, the texture wouldn't give it away. The color was a little odd, kind of a yellowish brown, not a pinkish white you'd expect of the real thing, but once it's in the sandwich it isn't noticeable. Taste was good. The peppery flavor was really strong which I liked. They also have oven roasted and hickory flavor, I'd liked to see how those stack up.

If you're experimenting with meat substitutes, I'd recommend it. I'm certain this will become a regular item on our Whole Foods shopping list.

What do you think? Would you dare to try Tofurky? If you're a vegetarian or semi-vegetarian, what is your favorite meat substitute?

Holy Everlasting Manicure

The Sally Hanson Salon Effects fulfilled the box's promise of up to 10 day and are still going. We're on day 15 now.

This Week I Heart: Sally Hansen Salon Effects

I had seen the latest Sally Hansen product in magazines for a couple months, so when I found some on the shelf at Walmart, I couldn't resist trying it out performing an adoption theory experiment.

NOTE: If you aren't a total PR nerd like me, just ignore the side comments and look at the pictures of my pretty nails.

I love having "done" nails (look! compatibility), but I'm so hard on a manicure that it never lasts long. If I plunk down the $15-35 for a professional mani, I can keep it looking nice for 3 or 4 days. If I do it myself, forget it. It'll be chipped by the end of the next day.

The box claims this will last up to 10 days. We'll see about that. I put them on Sunday afternoon (there's my trial-ability). It took a little getting used to, but it was really pretty easy and I'm typically a mess with nail polish (aaaand, there the complexity). It took about 20 minutes, but I was also watching tv.

The best part is no messy cuticles and no drying (relative advantage!). Half the time I've smudged it up before I'm completely dry and I didn't have to worry about that.

Moment of truth: washing my hair Monday morning. Something about the hot water and scrubbing usually does in a fresh at-home mani. My Salon Effects still looked perfect afterward. Two more shampoos later and it doesn't seem to have an effect on these (more relative advantage!).


The first tiny chips showed up Tuesday evening (can you even see them above?). That is about what I'd expect from a professional mani. But since then, they have stayed in great shape. It's Friday now, and I'd say my nails are still event ready.


At $8.50 per set, I won't be wearing these non-stop. These will, however, certainly be a go-to for special events, vacations and any time I need low-maintenance fancy nails for a week. I'm interested to see if they make it the whole 10 days, but I'm already thrilled they made it this long.

EVO: First Impressions

This week I upgraded my beloved blackberry to the new Sprint EVO. I've only had it for a few days, so I'm still figuring a few things out. Here's a quick run down of the pros and cons I've found as a first-time user.

Thumbs Up:

• Seven home screens mean I have tons of room to load and organize shortcuts. Apps are pretty easy to get to without a shortcut, but I'm using the screens to organize similar often-used apps.
• Apps, duh. The Sprint saleman told me "Any goofy weird thing you want your phone to do, just search the app store, you'll find something." So far, he was right on. An app review deserves it's own post.
• Dual-facing camera lets you see and shoot towards yourself. You can even use it as a mirror. I haven't fiddled with the video and camera much, but I'm looking forward to it.
• The video is awesome. Not only is the screen huge by mobile device standards, but everything loads super quick and the video is so so crisp and clear.
• My phone is as cool as yours and I don't have to use AT&T. I'm doing an excellent job of holding a decade plus grudge-fuled boycott of AT&T, and there's no way I'm backing down for a stupid iPhone.
• My phone is as cool as yours and I didn't have to buy an Apple. I'm a PC. I heart Google, Adobe, and I heart my PC. The Android hearts them too.
• While my Blackberry total changed the way I thought about and used the internet, in comparison, the mobile experience on the EVO is like angels singing. So freaking awesome. See above, I heart Google. If you like Chrome and iGoogle, I think you'll like Android internet.

Thumbs Down:

• Touch keypad is kind of hard to use. I am getting better after just a few days, but texting is a little hard and impossible while you're driving. Um, what? I didn't say that.
• Voice to text, while awesome in concept, is working about 75% of the time for me. Maybe it's my twang. Other voice apps work great for me, but 1 out of 4 voice texts pops up gobblity-gook. The longer the phrase, the more likely this is to happen. But, hey, I have voice text. Sweet!
• I haven't figured out how to delete music in the player. I listen to a ton of podcasts, and I delete them after listening. On the Blackberry this is easily done in the player. For now, I downloaded a file manager app, and I have to exit the player, remember which file I heard, navigate back to it, and delete. There must be a better way! But this is a first-time user review, and this is one of my first-time user problems.

Well, as you can see the pros are definitely outnumbering the cons at this point. I'm pretty happy with my new device.

What kind of mobile device are you using now, and what your favorite thing about it?

This Week I Heart: OSU Foundation's OSUccess.com

My friends over that the OSU Foundation are full of interesting ways to secure donations and then pass those dollars on to students. This newest project is so fun, I'm kind of a little obsessed with it.

OSUccess.com (see already how clever it's title is?) began last week and runs until Feb 20. Students enter for 10 chances to win a $1,000 scholarship. Students answer a question "How do you define success at OSU?" with a 300 word blog entry, a 30 second video or a high-resolution photo.

Easy, right? Where were these kind of scholarship applications when I was in school?

Winners will be announced on Feb. 26 (more about this special orange-letter day, later), and they receive the scholarship that day. So, even graduating seniors can enter. The best-of for each category will be selected (3), then one randomly drawn entry from each campus (4), then the remainder are drawn randomly from all entries (3).

Here where the obsession comes in. You can watch the entries as they are submitted via a live feed. Too fun.

Photo Feed

Video Feed

This Week I Heart: Mittens

If you are living in Oklahoma then you too have been subjected to some ridiculously cold weather lately. That is why, this week, I heart Mittens!

I am probably the only person over the age of 7 who regularly wears mittens, but I assure you they are far superior to gloves. I'm sure someone has scientifically proven this; I pretty sure I read that somewhere.

I'm cold on a regular day. What most people consider room temperature, I consider chilly. If I had my way, no office building, restaurant or movie theater would be set below 78'. So you can imagine how I have suffered this week when every morning tops out around 9'. I mean, seriously! The wind chill yesterday was zero! It just isn't right.

While, my tushy may have froze on the 5 minute walk from the car, my fingers were snug as bug, encapsulated in their thinsulate mittens. In fact, my hands were actually sweaty by the time I got into the office. At least one little part of me was warm.

Dear Philip Pullman, I Believe I Like You Very Very Much

I have found a new author that I am very much in like with. The author is Philip Pullman and you should run now, quick like a bunny, and read something he has written.

Sometimes, I develop this sort of obsession for a particular author. I go on a jag where I read absolutely everything they have written. This can go pretty quickly for new authors (like Joshilyn Jackson, whom I love, love, love) or it can take years, like the first author I did this with waaaaay back in elementary (Christopher Pike, whom I have long since outgrown, but still holds a dear place in my book-loving heart).

My newest author kick is Philip Pullman, and he is awesome with a side of kick-ass. My Pullman obsession started with the Golden Compass series (which the movie does no justice). On our recent road trip, John and I listened to a short story called "Once Upon a Time in the North" and now I'm wrapping up the first in his Sally Lockheart series.

On his website, Philip (he and I should be on a first name basis, right?) says,
"As a passionate believer in the democracy of reading, I don't think it's the task of the author of a book to tell the reader what it means."

He sounds like a pretty cool guy to me. I can't wait to read all his books and figure out what they mean to me.

This Week I Love: Thanksgiving

Need I say more? While Thanksgiving is not my absolute favorite holiday, it's pretty darn good. I means what not to love about a holiday that is basically food-based. I think every holiday should have a food component.

My favorite Thanksgiving dish is green bean casserole. As my sister Sarah said as a toddler, "Bean Beans!!"

What's your Thanksgiving fave?

Christmas Train is Coming to Guthrie

The Christmas Train is coming, the Christmas Train is coming! I love riding the train, and soon it will be coming to my hometown, Guthrie.

The Guthrie Chamber of Commerce has been working with ODOT and Amtrak to set up a special visit to Guthrie by the Heartland Flyer. The Heartland Flyer is scheduled to arrive in Guthrie December 10th, 11th, 12th and 13th: the first weekend of the Territorial Walk.

If this year's Christmas Train is successful, there is a chance we could have train service for all of Guthrie Festivals. Amtrak has agreed to provide this year's service for at no charge to the city and use it as a pilot for future endeavors.

The train holds 200 passengers. It will leave from OKC, Thursday December 10 at 9:35 p.m. and arrive in Guthrie at 10:55 p.m. Passengers can expect an after-hours reception before they take a walk through town for a little late night shopping. There are plenty of hotels or B&Bs where you can stay over. You be able to get around town via the trolley or rental car, or weather permitting, even a horse drawn carriage.

Amtrak tickets are currently $7 per person for one way, the price could go up to $11 the longer you wait! For Tickets Call: 1-800-USA- rail or visit www.amtrak.com (use the code GUT to bring up the Guthrie Christmas Train).

What a great way to have some holiday fun and do your part to show the powers-that-be that Oklahomans want and will use a light rail system.

I Heart My Public Library

As you may have guessed working in a library for 14 years has made me a big library fan, but it's not just my beloved OSU Library. My library-love extends to my awesome public library as well.

I serve on the Guthrie City Library Board, and our fantastic library director, Linda, ask the Board if we could share some info about a cool new resource at our library.

--Press Release from GPL---
Free Courses and Practice Tests Online at Guthrie Public Library

GUTHRIE--Improving the job search process, preparing for career certification, raising college entrance test scores and improving 21st century basic skills are all possible with just the click of a mouse at your local library!

Visit www.guthrielibrary.com and enjoy free, unlimited access to interactive skill-building courses in math, reading and writing as well as a broad range of practice tests based on official exams such as the ACT, SAT, GED, ASVAB, Allied Healthcare, Firefighter, Police Officer, Paramedic, EMT Basic, U.S. Citizenship, Postal Worker, Cosmetology, Real Estate Agent and Broker Exams.

This valuable service is available 24/7 from any internet-enabled computer—in your library, your office, and even from your home!

To find out more about how you can access LearningExpress Library, call Linda Gens, 405-282-0050 or stop by and ask any of your friendly library staff for more information.

The LearningExpress LibraryTM online learning platform provides more than 770 of the most up-to-date test-preparation and skill-building resources, helping both students and adults prepare for a wide range of academic and career-oriented exams as well as to improve basic skills in reading, writing and math. In addition, job-skills tutorials are available to assist in creating a great resume, expanding job search and networking skills, honing interviewing techniques, and improving business communications. Patrons also have the option of selecting from more than 130 e-book titles to help learners of all ages prepare for success. The innovative platform includes self-paced study, instant scoring and diagnostic feedback and can be accessed from any computer that has an Internet connection.

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This Week I Heart: True Blue Spa Line

It all started with a quest for the world's thickest body butter. In the winter, my skin is so dry I can't moisturize enough. I've found body butter is the way to go, if you can find one that's thick enough.

I was at a Bath and Body Works, sticking my finger in every sample tub of body butter, when the "friendly" sale girl asked if she could help. I told her I wanted thick, thick, super thick body butter, the thickest you got, as thick as Crisco, and thicker than that if you have it.

She kind of smirked and handed me a tub of the Too Shea body butter and said "Try this," but she said it in a sarcastic-you-don't-know-what-you're-asking-for kind of way. It was perfect (and she was shocked I thought so). When I read the ingredients I knew I'd found the only body butter I will ever need. Ingredients: Shea Butter. Too Shea and I have been living happily ever after ever since.

A couple weeks ago, I won a spa-themed basket at an auction. In it was a bottle of the Shea It Isn't So foot cream and Look Ma New Hands hand lotion. I am sold. This stuff is awesome. And now I can't wait to try more of the True Blue line.

Hey, I Know Them!

Tonight, I thought I'd send a little linky love to all my blogger friends. Over the past few years, I've become quite fond of blogs for a variety of reasons: entertainment, education, professional development. But, my favorites tend to be the blogs of folks I actually know. Here are a few. If I miss you, post your URL in the comments!

The fam
Wood Works for Guthrie by John
Dust on the Mirror by Daddy
The Miller Spot by Andrea
The Lopez Family by I think you can guess who

The Bonnie-pire
Naked Wife by Valerie
Clear as Mud by Ruth
When Reality Hits, Am I Ready by Germaine
Marissa Chavez's Blogosphere by Marissa

Other friends
The Czar of PR by Sean
Oooo, Shiny by Sam
Eschipul by Ed
Personal PR by Tiffany

This Week I Love: Netflix

The weekend is upon us, and that always makes me appreciate our Netflix subscription. John and I love movies, and we had trouble supporting our cinematic habit at the local rental shop. The trips back and forth, late fees, and roaming the aisles looking for the perfect pick were sucking a lot of the fun from our favorite hobby.

Enter Netflix. We've upgraded to the unlimited four-at-a-time plan. With this plan, we are only forced to go one or two days a week with no DVDs on hand. In those instances we can always fall back on the "watch on demand" programs. Hundreds of movies and television shows can be streamed directly from Netflix's site if you are member.

Other great benies include

• No late fees! John and I were spending as much in late fees as rental fees.
• Easy decisions. We add movies we want to our queue and arrange by genre. That way we never really have to decide what to watch when. We get a mix of comedies, dramas, documentaries, etc. and then just pick from what came in the mail that week.
• Massive selection. If it's on DVD, Netflix probably has it. We were sold by their selection of documentaries.
• Recommendations. You can rate movies you've seen and Netflix will make recommendations for other movies. We've seen so many great movies we never would have heard of this way. (we've rated nearly 1200 movies. um, yeah, we don't have a problem)
  

We currently have over 300 movies in our queue. If we stopped adding things, it would still take us a year and a half to watch them all.