it’s that time again! tuesday tips.. which are random tips that most likely will not really help you, but i am going to tell them to you anyway. because i can. and because i love alliteration.
tip 1: never, ever buy allure magazine.
this magazine was delivered to my mailbox by accident. the address on the actual magazine was far from my house, so i have no idea how it ended up in my mail! i thought “cool, a new, fun magazine to read while stairmilling it up!”…
new? yes.
fun? no.
unless “fun” to you means discovering a “superpractical” $5,995 coat…
…or a $425 burberry snowsuit for your toddler.
just.. no.
my tip: don’t buy allure. it sucks.
tip 2: see full blog feed in your google reader.
i rely heavily on google reader. yes, i try to click out to comment and give my blog friends page views when i can.. but if i am reading blogs from my phone, clicking out of google reader is just more trouble than it’s worth.. plus, the ads wouldn’t show up on my phone anyway (and in turn wouldn’t give my blog friends any money for the page view.)
SO.. i really hate it when my favorite blogs don’t show the full feed in my google reader. it basically means i miss out on reading a lot of their posts. sad, but true.
anyway, here’s a solution! simply copy and paste the URL of the blog that doesn’t show the full feed into the bar on this website.
once you hit submit, the website will generate a custom URL to put into your google reader so you can view the full-text feed! it will even give you a preview before using the link so you know it’s a working, valid URL.
yes, GC, that’s you!
after putting the custom URL into your google reader, you will start seeing the full posts instead of just a snippet.
ah, so awesome.
tip 3: if something seems too good to be true, it probably is.
i was buying 18 jars of biscoff spread the other day. yes, 18, you read that right. they were on sale (2 for $7!) so i had to stock up! well, next to the biscoff was this random jar that intrigued me:
i looked at the nutrition label.. calorie free?!
i bought it (it was nearly five bucks, shoot me!), brought it home, took one taste, and tossed it STRAIGHT in the trash. ew. ew. ew. don’t buy it. EVER.
moving on.
life latelies.. yes, i made that word up.
didn’t know if i should spell it “latlies” or “latelies” or “latelys” –i guess since it’s a fake word, spelling doesn’t matter.
anyway! two things to note.
one: we made gingerbread houses on sunday night! you may recall last year when we did this at kristen’s mom’s house. well, she was kind enough to invite us over again and it was a blast! here is the house marshall and i made:
and the one kristen & rory made:
i wish we could have ours on display at our house, but we all know that penny and randy would destroy it in a heartbeat.. so it’s on display at momma b’s.
speaking of destroying things.. that brings me to number two: the pups are at it AGAIN.
we have made an extra effort to get all food out of paw-reach.. but we didn’t take into account the corn kernel heating bag that marshall has been using for his sore neck. don’t worry, they destroyed it yesterday! corn all over the bed.
not sure what’s gotten into those two pups. very strange behavior. i guess they don’t want christmas presents. who am i kidding? they are going to get spoiled either way. they’re irresistibly cute and lovable. and spoilable.
well, hate to jet without mentioning anything worthwhile, but i have a whole lot of stuff to do to get ready for christmas.. and i am sure you do, too, so why are you even reading my blog right now anyway?!
Q~
is there a product you bought thinking you’d love but hated?
xo. janetha g.
Next Comments →
i like to try before buying and not buying, so for the most part, no. i do often buy things that i don’t end up using though. :( waste of money, i know.
a $5k is SO SUPER unpractical. eesh.
Magazines are so unrelatable (is that a real word?). This is why I read blogs. However if you spent $5,999 on some magical PB I may have to stop reading yours ;)
How on earth can a calorie-free peanut spread even exist? Only in America, I guess!
Nonono. None of that calorie-free stuff. I think I just gagged.
DID I TELL YOU ABOUT HOW MY DOG ATE MY LOOFAH. And I had been home for sub 60 minutes? What is my life.
I’m not a magazine reader other than the occasional airport necessity. I usually find them a waste :) Our dog thought my Mac cable was a chew treat…. fortunately, it still works even though it’s all taped up :)
how did i not know about the reader tip? Youre a lifesaver! Will be doing that ASAP.
oh and I tried that walden farms stuff before. It taste like rubber, no really. Chocolate covered rubber.
The Walden Farms ketchup made me want to cut my own tongue off. I’m pretty sure Satan himself owns that company.
Are u kidding me?! Why on earth would you buy that suntan lotion peanut goo?! Even me with my crazy eating disordered head wouldn’t go so far as to eating a calorie free pb. Barf. I forgive you for throwing that shit away.
Um, I think I bought that arctic zero too. Yep, straight to garbage. Ps, the third ingredient in arctic zero is sugar!
Wow, great tip about the readers! Like you, I HATE when I can’t read the entire post. I also hate when the pictures don’t load. I’m not sure why that seems to happen sometimes.
Those calorie free items are awful. I really don’t think they should be allowed on the shelves.
Oh! That snowsuit sounds like a steal- totally getting one for Kaylin. Its perfect, especially since it only gets cold enough here like 1 week a year for her to wear it ;). Bahhh to the peanut spread! Your house is super cute. I’ve purchased a few salad dressings that have turned out to be terrrrrible
I tried Arctic Zero a long time ago and it was the worst thing I ever tasted it in my life! It in no way shape or form tastes anything like ice cream. It was so expensive too.
i’ve done that with so many different kinds of teas…i know that’s random but i’m always a sucker for a good cup of tea and get SO disappointed…often!
I can only imagine that spread was pretty…nasty. Ewww. But the too good to be true principle definitely applies.
“SO.. i really hate it when my favorite blogs don’t show the full feed in my google reader.” <— it's a setting people can tweak in their WP settings to show full feed or not and I think some people do it so you're forced to "click here to continue reading…" but others I think are clueless about it and don't know it. Sort of like Blogger blogs with word verification on comments. Hair tear.
Good 'Reader tip!
I’ve never tried the Walden Farms products and now probably never will!
About a month after Lucas and I got two kittens (a very big deal for two just-out-of-college kids making no money and living in a TEENY apartment), the boy cat ate a golf ball-sized ball of thread that I’d thrown in the trash…it was leftover from quilting.
It got all twisted in his tummy and after an emergency visit to the vet and a $1,000 surgery, our cat was better. And we were in even more debt.
So nothing surprises me when it comes to animals eating stuff. But as crazy as it sounds, my cats stress me out more than my dogs.
Make-up.. Alllllll the time. I’m very brand loyal when it comes
To my makeup and when they discontinue a product, (which always happens to my FAVS) I end up having to settle until I find something I love.. Makeup “trying out” isn’t cheap, either..
That walden farms brand is horrible. I tried some of their jams and as soon as I opened one I drove straight back to the store to return them. I have heard only bad things about that brand. Yuck gross.
One brand that never lets me down? Trader joes!!!
I love ranch salad dressing so much. But of course, it’s like the least healthy dressing around… so I found something similar to that pb – fat free with like next to no calories and I thought it would be the best thing that ever happened to my life. I made a huge salad with a ton of veggies and slathered that stuff on. And then gagged and gagged. And then kicked myself for putting it all over my salad without taste testing it first because all those veggies had to go in the trash. Apparently food needs some calories to be edible (except diet coke…).
All the Walden Farms stuff that I’ve tried is absolutely disgusting.
I love your gingerbread houses!!! So cute. Christmas makes me bonkers, in a good way I just get so excited about everything.
I constantly buy hair products that I hate. It’s a weird thing I do, I buy hair products. I bought a mint shampoo that was really expensive once, I am having a brain fart can’t remember the name, but I used it and my scalp was ON FIRE got so itchy and burned like a chemical burn. Not a soothing mint kind of feel… That was the worst product I ever bought that I thought I would love.
Reading because I love you…….yes I have bought a lot of mistakes fortunately I can’t remember any right now so…..I’m doomed to purchase them again :)
xo
Allure really is the worst! I can’t stand it.
I am totally with you on being able to see the full feed in reader– it’s my biggest pet peeve!
i research obsessively before buying anything. i am so not the impulse shopper! i always make sure i can get a return policy as well. oh yeah i tried a walden farms product a couple years ago and it went into the trash too. seriously digusting. also disgusting…better n peanut butter. vom. nothing like nut butter AT ALL. also, i can’t stand the girl on the allure cover. she’s so full of herself it isn’t even funny!
oh my gosh! what little monsters!
good thing they’re adorable, but still! capone and jake would be in deep trouble for that behavior!
I think that snowsuit is hilarious. If there was a $20 version I would buy it for my non-existant children.
The only magazines I read are triathlon, runner’s world, and I occasionally by muscle & fitness(or similar) if I need workout ideas. I am so bored of all the women’s health magazines. Too many barbie weights and too much focus on looking pretty.
You kept their magazine? hahaha
Do the pupsters usually get a lot of outside time and now they’re not since it’s cold outside? I know Charlie gets mischevious when he’s bored and has a lot of energy!
Unfortunately, I have purchased my share of disgusting/gross products in the past. I used to feel bad throwing them out, but it’s not worth it to force myself to eat or drink something that is so awful. The last thing I purchased and threw away was coconut milk yogurt. I was so excited when it came out and I immediately bought four containers of it at my grocery store because I just knew I was going to love it. I couldn’t stand it! I know many people love it and eat it all the time, but I just couldn’t get past the taste and texture. It tasted like chemical-infused plastic to me. So, I dumped the container I had opened. Luckily, I knew someone at work that would eat the other three containers, so I didn’t have to throw all of it away.
I bought Better’N Peanut Butter once and thought I was going to barf… it was like a weak-peanutty glue. I think you could totally build a house with that sh*t and some bricks. Ick. I think your dogs are making a plea for attention… you know, because you obviously don’t give them enough love and snuggles and treats. *giggle*
Oh my, I’ve seen so many different dressings and sauces made by that brand before and have been tempted to try their “zero calorie” concautions but glad I’ve steered clear [but sorry about your mishap!]- the only other PB that I’ve liked is Better Than Peanut Butter…
P.S. Who would ever spend that much $$$ on a jacket that their baby will grow out of within a month?!
Oh that baby onesie!!! Wow, just… wow!!! If I saw a baby in that I think I’d have to slap the mother. I think it might be a law or something…
I’ve heard some people at my Weight Watchers meetings rave about Walden Farms salad dressings, and I tried one that was SOOOOO gross!!! I’d rather splurge on the real deal and just not have that much! Yuck! That “peanut butter” looks disgusting too!
I tried Better n’ Peanut Butter and (again I heard about it at WW) it was gross too! Sometimes you just have to have the real thing and just less of it. It’s probably better for you anyway without all of the other stuff they add to offset the things they take out!
ha ha that calorie free peanut butter just sounded like it wouldn’t taste good.
The grossest thing I ever ate was cinnamon roll oatmeal. It sounded delicious but it tasted nothing at all like a cinnamon bun–or anything else edible!
Oh, but the $485 toddler snow suit is in fact so practical. Braedon and Makenzie each have one for every day of the week.
Ha! hahahaha! Seriously who would buy that?!
Your gingerbread house is so pretty!
I’m not even going to have a toddler until I can afford to outfit them in Burberry outerwear. You know, because toddler’s totally care AND don’t destroy everything they wear. Plus, I’ve heard they grow quicky and someday become giant adult-size humans. Crazy. Love it.
I do comma wish that I could afford to outfit ANYONE in Burberry.
Kombucha tea … I tried, I really did. But after a few sips, I had to trash it :(
YES! Thank you! I hate when blogs do this in reader…one of my favorites does this, and I miss out on so many of her posts :( Thanks for the tip Janetha G!
And Randy would eat the shit out of that gingerbread house! Nice job by the way!!
Yes – those dried seaweed snacks at Trader Joe’s. There are very few foods I don’t like, but those things are just smelly and not at all delicious.
I haven’t made a gingerbread house in WAY too long!! sad! Love your ‘latelies’ – i’m SO behind on blog reading.
OMG I hope it’s a typo – $6,000???!!!!!
Ewww, Walden Farms is total shit! A woman I worked for told me about it, and this was when I was in my crazy obsessive calorie-counting days and thought it sounded like a good idea. I never tried the peanut butter but I tried the chocolate sauce and one of the salad dressings and it was AWFUL. I never throw away food, but I just had to with this- SO GROSS.
haha I’ve been tempted by that “peanut butter” too but haven’t tried it because like you said it’s just too good to be true!!
Hey Doll! I’ve never had an ~ish with Allure! LOL, I see things like this coat and put them on my vision board if I like them ;) You should see my board….lots of good stuff!!
Ok, I need to know more about google reader! I’ve never used it!! Is it sweet??
xxoo
Haha, calorie-free peanut butter is def too good to be true. But that’s not a $5 wasted! You shared with us a valuable lesson never to buy calorie-free edibles unless it’s water (or diet pop).
Allure. Peeked at my friend’s and snoozed for real. I don’t think the products there are that nice anyway. It’s window-shopping for people who don’t actually want to go out to the windows.
My friend at work got some Walden Farms salad dressing, and I was like NOPE. Won’t do it. She said it’s horrible! It’s just chemicals…
Maybe your pups are feeling restless because they are inside more because of the cold? I don’t know their routine, but that might be it.
Wow. That golden Burberry space suit for a toddler? Yikes. If they’re going to outgrow it in 6 weeks…really??? The only magazine I’ll buy, occasionally, is Real Simple. But I get their emails, which is usually good enough. I’ve tried the Walden Farms chocolate sauce and ketchup (both calorie free, allegedly). The chocolate sauce was great. We had it at Christmas last year. Mom and I bought it as a joke and didn’t tell anyone what it was. It was so good. I looked up the ingredients, and it’s mostly cocoa powder, splenda, and xantham gum. Makes sense. The ketchup didn’t taste like traditional ketchup at all. It was more like a spicy, seasoned sauce. I liked it on my roasted sweet potatoes, but it definitely wasn’t a ketchup substitute. It was thinner, not thick like ketchup, but it was a tomato + garlic + onion sauce that I was happy with as a sauce. So what did the peanut spread taste like? Was it just foul and nasty? Or was it just not what you expected? I’m curious, because every review of their peanut spread was the same: TERRIBLE. I’ve never seen it in stores, so I haven’t tried it. But the 2 products I did try were okay. Yeah, the ketchup wasn’t ketchup, but it was a good sauce. I might tell them to market it differently…it would go great on pasta. It would even make a nice sub for cocktail sauce.
It was just.. I can’t even explain.. like rubber flavored with chemicals. No trace of peanut flavor.
I bought that Walden Farms “PB” once too and nearly died. I can still taste it if I think about it. I think it’s literally one of the most disgusting things I’ve ever tasted.
I bought that calorie free crap once… and threw it away faster than you could imagine. Its disgusting!
Your dogs. Sigh. They kill me. :)
Thanks so much for the reader tip!!! That drives me crazy!
your dog shenanigans are CRACKING me up. i retold them to kyle (yes i caught up on your life while in argentina…because i saved all your posts for vacation). anyway, we were both laughing at the devious little ways.
ps i hate when posts are just snippets. i usually just stop reading them, sadly, but this is a better option. do people choose those settings themselves?
ps sorry about that nasty spread crap. so gross.
Hahaha! Love your comments on Allure, they made me giggle. So droll. ANd I totally agree- how ridiculous is that magazine?! Yeah…no :-P Hmmm…I bought coconut flour once to add to my oats, and thought I would love it. Bleugh. Hated it. :-S That whipped nut butter sounded crazy! Love your gingerbread house! ;-) xxyx
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