Redbook Plagiarizes Grandmother
So I am perusing the vaunted Redbook magazine, bible for the happening American woman, and a few things pop out at me that require prompt addressing. Beginning with the Readers’ tips section. Which submitters get some sort of money award when here, right here on the Kaitlyn Mae Book Blog, Grandmother offered the same household hints and for FREE!
In fact I do have some examples.
From Redbook: Make a grocery list on the computer, listing the items you normally buy, sorted by aisle and layout of the store.”
There was more but below, a quote from Grandmother’s post to this Blog and a link to same.
I, of course, have my grocery list on my Palm Pilot, sorted in aisle order and carefully itemized to include sizes required and sale items upon.
From excerpt of Grandmother’s “organization” book posted on this Blog.
Reading on I discover that Redbook has a contest. The reader is expected to tell Redbook: “What’s the one item your home couldn’t function without?” Redbook will award the best tip five fine products they have in the “article” which is nothing more than one great big commercial. But I digress.
Any yon reader can use Grandmother’s tip to Kaitlyn Mae in a recent missive instructed Kaitlyn how best to maintain a “tidy nest”.
If you decide to submit my suggestion, you would send it to
Redbook Magazine
224 West 57th Street
New York, NY 10019
OR..email redbook@hearst.com
I suppose whoever gets the hint to Redbook first would win.
Below is the answer to Redbook’s question as to what your home should not be without, some narrative on my reasoning, and the link to the two wonderful articles should you have missed them. Read Grandmother’s household hints, the kind Heloise would never tell you, and yon readers will need Redbook no more.
As for the cleaning products used, Kaitlyn, Grandmother has tried them all. To include magic erasing sponges, specially designed wands that would clean windows with a mere swipe and one cleaning product called, I’m not making this up, Mean Green.
All you need, Kaitlyn, is some ordinary household cleaning ammonia.
Indeed, Grandmother buys cleaning ammonia by the gallon and has a slew of spray devices, some purchased for that purpose alone and one being that empty bottle of Mean Green. Fill the container up about 25% with the cleaning ammonia and fill the rest with plain tap water, Kaitlyn Mae.
Boom. Spray this mixture on anything requiring a removal of grease and dirt and wipe with a paper towel or wet rag.
Wonderful Missive 1
Wonderful Missive 2
I’m not done with Redbook yet. In the event yon readers would like to win a trip to “Beaches”, send a proof of purchase from any of the following products: Campbell’s Soup, Campbell’s Select, Hellman’s Mayonnaise, Jimmy Dean sausage, Nestle Toll House chips, Ritz crackers, Tyson foods-to the address listed above, but with “Great Gatherings” Sweepstakes on the envelope. You need to get them in by 2/15/05.
Well hell yeah it’s an advertisement but what do I care? I just want yon reader to win a trip and maybe send Grandmother some pictures. When Grandmother runs a contest it will be a trip to Disney world and we’re all going together.
Beyond the contest, eschew the Redbooks of the world-stick with The Wise I.
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Chinese Evergreen Grows a Flower!
I was so surprised I had to call over horticulturally impaired husband as witness. Though I’ve provided a few pictures below for proof.
First time ever, a flower on my Chinese Evergreen!
Looks a little obscene.
Well I guess it’s a flower. I’ve never seen such a thing on an indoor plant in my life. And I am a great fan of indoor plants, yon reader should reference my missive on their purpose and see pics of my handsome indoor collection
HERE You might want to check the October archive as the pictures are not part of the post. In the archive you can scroll down to the pictures.
Anyway, below the magnificent Chinese Evergreen flower:
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The Art of Grocery Shopping
In an Excel memo field I discover a few notes I’d entered during a recent jaunt to the grocery.
They seemed important at the time and on second look, The Wise I thinks they’re still important. As part of the wit and wisdom I should pass on to sweet Kaitlyn Mae yon reader must understand. Here, in this post of miscellany, I will insert the wisdom lest the Excel cell be erased.
To Kaitlyn I would say:
Use store name brands for a side ingredient in a recipe as opposed to the main ingredient, Kaitlyn Mae. For instance, the store brand of canned carrots will do fine as a component in a pot of vegetable soup. But if the dish is for “Parsleyed Carrots” you want to use a good name brand.
This does not apply all the time or across all foodstuffs, but Grandmother has been shopping for almost 40 plus years now and it’s such a good general rule of thumb I’d beg Kaitlyn to follow it unless personal experience proves Grandmother wrong.
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The Per Unit Price
Some years ago, Kaitlyn, the congress critters passed a law that actually did consumers some good. By federal law, all items offered for sale require a “per unit” cost. Grandmother supposes there are exceptions but pay attention.
Cat litter comes to mind as a good example. Cat litter is sold in the grocery, in pet stores, even in the little corner convenience stores. And the sizes!
There’s 10 lbs of the clumping here, 15 pounds of the non-clumping here, 30 pounds of multiple cat litter over here, and on the bottom shelf, unsold, some liberal environmentalist’s stupid idea of actual newspaper for the litter pan.
Each package/can/bucket or bag of cat litter has a price, ranging from $4.99 to $29.99 for the item. How is Grandmother supposed to determine the best price? For once upon a time Kaitlyn Mae, manufacturers really did want to fool the consumer with different packaging offering less product than before, but at the same price. Well hell I suppose they STILL want to fool the consumer but pay close attention to the “per unit” price somewhere on the package label.
Cat litter would use a “pound” unit. That big bag of multi-cat litter might be $2.97 a lb. The stuff with the baking soda goes for $32.99 a pound! The non-clumping stuff is a bargain at $.53 a pound but it doesn’t clump!
All things being equal, including properties desired of the litter, the amount required and any other personal choices, choose the litter with the cheapest per pound price.
Some items might be sold by “the foot”, or by “the pint”, whatever unit is required to measure the product. But a per unit price, whatever the unit used, should be readily available and easy to see for proper consumer comparison.
Finally, Kaitlyn, please always take a grocery list to the store. Grandmother is not even suggesting that the grocery list is to STOP impulsive purchases. It’s more to insure that REQUIRED purchases are properly bought. Because Kaitlyn, you might return home with lots of stuff not on your list. But if you return home without the mayonnaise so desperately needed for planned sandwiches, then you will likely have to go back for the item.
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