Happy Easter 2010 from Practically at Home

Happy Easter 2010 from Practically at Home

Winding my way westward!

Practically at Home is taking a trek - to the American Wild West - for Holy Week this year.

How will you spend the spring  holiday week? Has the Easter Bunny filled all the Easter baskets yet? Have you colored those Easter eggs?

Best wishes all around for a blessed Passover, a Happy Easter and a wonderful spring break.


Spring is finally here!

Have you seen the crocuses popping up all over? Soon, the daffodils and tulips will follow.

Related Items of Interest:

• DIY Resurrection Eggs: 12 cool countdown Easter lessons for families
• Easter foods explained: Why do people eat eggs?
• Easter foods explained: Why do people eat ham?
• Easter foods explained: Why do people eat hot cross buns
• Easter foods explained: Why do people eat lamb?
• Easter recipe: Resurrection Lesson Cookies
• Fifteen top sites for free Easter Bunny coloring pages
• Lenten fasts take myriad forms, even creative ones
• Recipe: Easter Bunny's Favorite OJ Cooked Carrots
• Running season: 12 ways to hop past Easter weight gain
• Sixteen top sites for free Palm Sunday coloring pages

Feminine High-Jinks from Kotex

Feminine High-Jinks from Kotex

(Mature content warning - perhaps. Then again, maybe not!)

Have you seen the new ads from Kotex? How many women cannot relate to the sarcasm here?

What's with all the white lycra in feminine hygiene product ads?

For how many decades have personal products marketers tried to put a pleasant spin on old Aunt Flo, a woman's monthly visitor? (Just take a look at these old print advertisements for feminine hygiene products from the past.)

Personally, as a marketing and promotional professional, I have to salute the folks at Kotex for sending up themselves and their own history of euphemistic advertising and flowery spin doctoring of Mother Nature's proverbial monthly curse.

Simply hilarious. In fact, the first time I saw the new Kotex ads on TV, I laughed so hard I had cramps.

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Related Item:

Idioms Unpacked: Under the Weather

"Muriel could not come to work. She's under the weather today." We often hear this idiomatic phrasing, which seems to have little to do with meteorological conditions. What does it mean to be under the weather? What precipitated this popular expression?

By Linda Ann Nickerson 

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Photo Fun - Is It American Idol ... or Alaska?

Photo Fun - Is It American Idol ... or Alaska?

One of these young ladies is Alaska Governor (and 2008 U.S. Vice Presidential candidate) Sarah Palin's daughter Bristol.

The other one is American Idol Season 9 finalist Katie Stevens, from Middlebury, Connecticut.

Check out the hairstyles, the make-up, the gleaming white smiles. Which is the budding actress, and which is the singer? Which is the young mother, and which is the brand-new licensed driver?

Leave a comment, if you can guess!


Related Items of Interest:

Bristol Palin to Appear on Secret Life of the American Teenager

Bristol Palin, daughter of former Alaska Governor and VP candidate Sarah Palin, will appear on Secret Life. Bristol Palin will play herself on the TV drama The Secret Life of the American Teenager. Bristol Palin has become an advocate for teen abstinence.

Who is American Idol Finalist Katie Stevens?

Katie Stevens was named a Top 12 finalist for Season 9 of American Idol. Katie Stevens entered American Idol, hoping to start a singing career and please her grandmother, has Alzheimer's Disease. Who is American Idol Season 9 finalist Katie Stevens?

 

Preying, Not Praying

Hiatus Sought from Pious Thought - As the public feeding frenzy focuses on a certain unwed teen mother-to-be, one can only wonder: Perhaps we ought not judge, unless we have walked in another's shoes.

Getting to Know the American Idol Season 9 Finalists

Getting to Know the American Idol Season 9 Finalists

Who's your favorite contestant this year - now that Fox TV has announced the Top 12 finalists for Season 9 of American Idol (the popular musical talent competition)? And who is your favorite American Idol judge this year (see photo - at right)?

For which American Idol Season 9 performer are you rooting the hardest?

Check out these American Idol Season 9 finalist profiles ... and pick out your winner. (American Idol Season 9 finalists - the Top 12 - are listed here in alphabetical order - by first name.)

Who is American Idol Finalist Andrew Garcia?

Californian Andrew Garcia was named one of the top 12 finalists for Season 9 of American Idol. Andrew Garcia entered American Idol to pursue a better life for his toddler son. Who is American Idol Season 9 finalist Andrew Garcia?

Who is American Idol Finalist Aaron Kelly?

Pennsylvania teen Aaron Kelly was named a 12 finalist for Season 9 of American Idol. Aaron Kelly has been compared to American Idol Season 7 runner-up David Archuleta. Who is American Idol Season 9 finalist Aaron Kelly?

Who is American Idol Finalist Casey James?

Texan Casey James was named one of the top 12 finalists for Season 9 of American Idol. Tagged "eye candy" by judge Kara DioGuardi, Casey James has a colorful background and life turnaround tale.Who is American Idol Season 9 finalist Casey James?

Who is American Idol Finalist Crystal Bowersox?

Crystal Bowersox was named one of the top 12 finalists for Season 9 of American Idol. Crystal Bowersox carries her own guitar, autographed by Melissa Etheridge and Shania Twain. Who is American Idol Season 9 finalist Crystal Bowersox?

Who is American Idol Finalist Didi Benami?

Tennessean Didi Benami was named one of the top 12 finalists for Season 9 of American Idol. Didi Benami said she wanted to win American Idol to honor a best friend who died. Who is American Idol Season 9 finalist Didi Benami?

 

Who is American Idol Finalist Katie Stevens?

Katie Stevens was named a Top 12 finalist for Season 9 of American Idol. Katie Stevens entered American Idol, hoping to start a singing career and please her grandmother, has Alzheimer's Disease. Who is American Idol Season 9 finalist Katie Stevens?

Who is American Idol Finalist Lacey Brown?

Lacey Brown was named one of the top 12 finalists for Season 9 of American Idol. A pastor's daughter, Lacey Brown grew up listening only to Christian music. Who is American Idol Season 9 finalist Lacey Brown?

Who is American Idol Finalist Lee Dewyze?

Lee DeWyze was named one of the top 12 finalists for Season 9 of American Idol. Lee Dewyze is the blue-eyed, scruffy bearded guitarist with the gravelly and soulful rock voice. Who is American Idol Season 9 finalist Lee Dewyze?

Who is American Idol Finalist Michael Lynche?

Michael Lynche was named a top 12 finalist for Season 9 of American Idol. Despite rumors of Michael Lynche's expulsion from the show for premature disclosure (by his father), the burly singer is still in the running. Who is American Idol Season 9 finalist Michael Lynche?

Who is American Idol Finalist Paige Miles?

Paige Miles was named one of the top 12 finalists for Season 9 of American Idol. The former cheerleader, unseen on TV till Hollywood week, sang her way to the American Idol viewers' hearts. Who is American Idol Season 9 finalist Paige Miles?

Who is American Idol Finalist Siobhan Magnus?

Siobhan Magnus was named one of the top 12 finalists for Season 9 of American Idol. The quirky Cape Cod glassblower astonished American Idol fans with her big voice. Who is American Idol Season 9 finalist Siobhan Magnus?

Who is American Idol Finalist Tim Urban?

Tim Urban was named a top 12 finalist for Season 9 of American Idol. Tim Urban did not initially make the American Idol Top 24, but AI recalled him when Chris Golightly was disqualified. Who is American Idol Season 9 finalist Tim Urban?

 

Talking 'Bout Trash

Talking 'Bout Trash.

We've done some juggling this week, as we had a small home repair project underway. Of course, this event precipitated some early spring cleaning. There's just something about moving furniture (particularly file cabinets) that seems to light a fire under me to do some sorting.

And sorting usually  leads to discarding (and plenty of dusting).

And discarding leads to multiple bins: file, donate and trash.

Why does a simple chore, such as taking out the trash, elicit so many groans? Sometimes, it just seems easier to perform these tasks myself. (At least, I don't have to pull it to the curb on a bike, like the photographed fellow on a street in China.)

Remember the story of The Little Red Hen? (CTRL-click the link to read a cute rebus of this popular children's story at Enchanted Learning, if you need a refresher.)

Anyway, I tackled larger-than-life dust bunnies with a vengeance. I cleaned out the cupboards better than Old Mother Hubbard. I arranged attire by color and style. I shredded old financial papers like an Oval Office insider. And I sorted those files like nobody's business.

Now, like the hen enjoying her proverbial fresh-baked bread, I am living it up with a clutter-free home and office ... at least for a day or two.

Related Items:
Ask Not - a Trash Talk
"Our dear Mother Nature's a jealous old broad,
Who will not stand by for destruction.
Our looting, polluting should just be outlawed,
Our planet deserves reconstruction....."
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What's in YOUR Garden?

What's in YOUR Garden?

This spring, as you clean out those garden beds, removing winter debris and dead plantings, why not surprise your neighbors with some scintillating new statuary?

Here are some fun figurines we have found. Some are exotic, while others are mystical or even mythical in nature. Want to add some wildlife and wonder to your own home garden? Put some fantasy fauna out there with your flora?

Maybe those garden gnomes and lawn jockeys have seen their best days already. After all now gardeners can mix it up with meerkats.

Would you rather have Bigfoot or a gazing ball in your garden? How about a life-sized land shark among your lilies?

Or you might start neighbors' tongues a-wagging, if you simply set some fake fossilized dinosaur bones in your garden bed.

Some of these strange garden statues could be combined to create a most unusual suburban safari or an underwater journey - right in a balcony garden bed, a patio planting or a lumbering landscape.

All it takes is a little imagination, a bit of whimsy and a wheelbarrow filled with cash (or plastic). Yikes.