If You Give a Granny a Coffee Pot

01.27.12 / Uncategorized / Author: / Comments Off
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It started simple enough. I went to get my first cup of morning coffee. I lifted the feather-light pot to my cup with ease only to discover that the water did not filter down through the grounds, hence it wasn’t my toning exercises making this small task easier, it was a broken small kitchen appliance that gave the empty canister a “lighter than air” (or lighter than coffee, at least) feel.

I went to the store with a tight-fisted budget and simple requirements. What a shock! With the cost of regular coffee peaking at $10 on sale, why would anyone want or need to spend hundreds of dollars on a machine that takes special filters — I like buying 200 for $1 at the dollar store. Heck sometimes I even use them around the house as cheap chip plates! — or machines that take special single-serve coffee flavors. These are around $1 a piece and although the coffee may be tasty, I’ll stick to the 12 cups I get with the 3 scoops of ground coffee beans.
So, I’m pleased as punch with my new 12-cup, auto-timer, name-brand, $15 coffee pot. It looks like a space gadget with so much chrome.
Then, it happens. I get distracted, and my mind moves on to more improvements. Our old sugar container looks pretty shabby next to our new jet-powered coffeepot. Then, of course, it would make the mornings all the better drinking out of shiny new mug. And I wonder if we’ll get enough income tax refund back to replace the counter tops? Now, what did I do with those magazine clippings of that breakfast nook?
For now I am content with the new coffee pot, but you know what happens “If You Give A Mouse a Cookie.”

For those who haven’t picked up a children’s book since 1984, “If You Give A Mouse a Cookie” was written in 1985 by Laura Numeroff. Its plot is about a boy who gives a mouse a cookie, then the mouse needs some milk, then a napkin and on and on through a series of events until they [ ** is this "they are" or "it is" back? The mouse is singular in the title ** ] for another cookie.
A fun exercise for your budding writer (or blogger) is to write your own circle story in the Mouse format. Download this fun enrichment guide that features a fill-in-the-blank teaching lesson designed for the classroom (along with other activities) based on this best selling childrens book.
www.firststage.org/media/pdf/Mouse_EG_FINAL.pdf

Just how COOL are You?

09.24.10 / Uncategorized / Author: / Comments: (0)
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With fall here, Tightwad Granny and Sir Spendthrift have been arguing about whether to open the windows or to keep the air conditioner running.

Every time I hear the air kick on, I almost can see my hard-earned dollars being sucked into a pneumatic tube straight to the utility company.

I REALLY want to open the windows. Spendthrift REALLY wants to run the air. So I decided to do a little research on the simple technology of opening a window. Here are my findings:

He’s right — When the air outside is hot (even if it is windy) it feels cool to our body because the sweat on our bodies is evaporating (ooh). Furniture, walls, floors do not sweat so they are absorbing heat and becoming heat radiators.

I’m right — Opening the windows at night if it is cooler outside is the only time the house can be cooled.

Join the fan club!

Point your fan so it blows in and cool air will come in, but no warm air will be going out. Point it so that it blows out and warm air will blow out, but cool air won’t come in.

The solution — Either have two windows open and use one fan to blow out the warm air, or if you have two fans, have one blowing in and one blowing out. That must be a record. I’ve used a form of the word blow seven times.

Other things to consider to be a cool as Tightwad Granny:

Living in a tomb — Make sure you have all your windows covered with blinds and curtains (sunlight = radiation = heat) and lights turned off (you are heating up the room by the wattage of the bulb).

Check the direction of your ceiling fan — You should be able to feel the air coming down.

We did this one at the results were remarkable — Use a programmable thermostat to adjust air at night and when no one is home. Do not place a TV or lamp by your thermostat. It will make it run longer.

Go green — Plant trees on the south and west sides of your house. Use a trellis to grow vines to shade windows.

This is timely for us — Use light color shingles to reflect heat.

Stay cool, and take advantage of the cool fall nights!