DEET -free bug repellant

I just found out about Buzz Away insect repellent which is all-natural. I don't like to use anything with DEET.




I've been using Cutter Advanced for the past few years since it also has no DEET. I'll have to get some of the Buzz Away to see if it will be another good choice. Always good to have insect repellent in the cabinet for those many times we need it.

Currency Conversion - useful info

Whenever we are planning a trip, I check out the conversion rate for dollars vs. the other country's currency. I usually use xe

I just saw another site that I think I'll use more: CurRate

Besides having the exchange rate, they include pictures of the country's coins and paper money. For anyone with IPhone, there's also a mobile application.

Can be interesting just to check out what money looks like from different countries.

Useful info for when you just"gotta go" during a movie at a theater

I read about this on a travel blog. You can check the info online or upload an app to your iPhone. (I don't have one. Still using my Juke from Verizon.)

When we go to a movie theater, I ALWAYS make sure I go to the bathroom before the feature begins. I don't want to miss anything important in the film. With this info, I can go DURING the film. Well, maybe I won't HAVE to go then but will make the trip anyway. No fun to sit UNCOMFORTABLE while in the theater and then make a mad dash to the facilities as soon as it ends. Good, too, that it even tells you what you missed so you don't need to ask your seatmate and disturb those around you.

Check it out
http://runpee.com/#app=5c9d&e1bd-RunPeeID=0.0.0&3156-selectedIndex=0

Amazing that someone actually created this site.

Products for people who carry too much stuff on the plane

Interesting organizers for airplane travel. Better than having to reach down to get something from under the seat in front of you. (Seatbelt makes it very difficult to reach.) Of course, the water bottle in picture had to be purchased at the airport for premium price.

From gadling.com



Ever found yourself sitting in your coach seat with way too much stuff? Your iPod, magazines, mobile phone, water bottle, headphones, bag of snacks and a book? Or things could be even worse, and you'll have kids to your left and right which means you also have diapers, more books, crayons, toys, wipes and juice boxes.

Lets face it - coach seats are not designed for people with stuff, the seat pocket is usually occupied by the airline magazine, stale pretzels and of course, the Sky Mall catalog.

This is where the three products in this article can help - they each offer a way to help you carry some of that stuff, and get it organized once you reach your seat.

Zen Class Travel Nirvana Seatback Organizer and Travel Tote



The Nirvana seatback organizer is the perfect product for people with too much stuff. The bag starts out as a shoulder tote, and once on board your plane, you open it up and hang it on the seatback table.

Inside this tote is where you'll find multiple pockets, a bottle holder and even special pockets for your MP3 player and memory cards/sim cards.

The Nirvana Seatback Organzier and Travel Tote is available directly from the manufacturer, and costs $39.99.


Sarahbelli "Tray Bien"



The Sarahbelli Tray Bien is different kind of seatback table organizer. The Tray Bien slides over the entire table, and comes in various designs.

Each design is specifically made to hold stuff for its intended user - the kids version holds crayons, coloring books and a water bottle, the baby version holds a baby bottle, diapers and wipes, and the traveler version is designed for your mobile phone, MP3 player, magazines and a water bottle.

Each of the six versions costs $39.95, and can be ordered directly from Sarahbelli.


The Cup-Pilot



The final product in this lineup only holds one item - but to many travelers it's the one product they'd never want to board the plane without.

The Cup-Pilot is a cleverly designed cup holder, which can be attached to almost anything. It'll hang on your tray table or even on your rolling suitcase.

The Cup-Pilot was invented by Patrick J. Garahan, who twice served as Secretary of Transportation for the State of Vermont, so this man knows a thing or two about travel.

The product costs $18.95 and can be ordered directly on their site, or from Sky Mall.

Simple Cures

Simple cures without prescriptions...


GRANDMA'S CURES - Keep This Handy On The Fridge

Did you know that drinking two glasses of Gatorade can relieve headache pain almost immediately-- without the unpleasant side effects caused by traditional 'pain relievers?'

Did you know that Colgate toothpaste makes an excellent salve for burns?

Before you head to the drugstore for a high-priced inhaler filled with mysterious chemicals, try chewing on a couple of curiously strong peppermints. They'll clear up your stuffed nose.

Achy muscles from a bout of the flu? Mix 1 tablespoon of horseradish in 1 cup of olive oil. Let the mixture sit for 30 minutes, then apply it as a massage oil, for instant relief for aching muscles.

Sore throat? Just mix 1/4 cup of vinegar with 1/4 cup of honey and take 1 tablespoon, six times a day. The vinegar kills the bacteria.

Cure urinary tract infections with Alka Seltzer. Just dissolve two tablets in a glass of water and drink it at the onset of the symptoms. Alka Seltzer begins eliminating urinary tract infections almost instantly-- even though the product has never been advertised for this use.

Honey remedy for skin blemishes... Cover the blemish with a dab of honey and place a Band-Aid over it. Honey kills the bacteria, keeps the skin sterile, and speeds healing. Works overnight.

Listerine therapy for toenail fungus. Get rid of unsightly toenail fungus by soaking your toes in Listerine mouthwash. The powerful antiseptic leaves your toenails looking healthy again.

Easy eyeglass protection... To prevent the screws in eyeglasses from loosening, apply a small drop of Maybelline Crystal Clear nail polish to the threads of the screws before tightening them.

Cleaning liquid that doubles as bug killer... If menacing bees, wasps, hornets, or yellow jackets get in your home and you can't find the insecticide, try a spray of cleaning fluid. Insects drop to the ground instantly.

Smart splinter remover... Just pour a drop of glue over the splinter, let dry, and peel the dried glue off the skin. The splinter sticks to the dried glue.

Tomato paste boil cure... Cover the boil with tomato paste as a compress. The acids from the tomatoes soothe the pain and bring the boil to a head.

Balm for broken blisters... To disinfect a broken blister, dab on a few drops of Listerine, a powerful antiseptic.

Vinegar to heal bruises... Soak a cotton ball in white vinegar and apply it to the bruise for 1 hour. The vinegar reduces the blueness and speeds up the healing process.
Kills fleas instantly... Dawn dish washing liquid does the trick. Add a few drops to your dog's bath and shampoo the animal thoroughly. Rinse well to avoid skin irritations. Good-bye fleas.


Rainy day cure for dog odor... Next time your dog comes in from the rain, simply wipe down the animal with any dryer sheet, instantly making your dog smell springtime fresh.

Eliminate ear mites... All it takes is a few drops of corn oil in your cat's ear. Massage it in, then clean with a cotton ball. Repeat daily for 3 days. The oil soothes the cat's skin, smothers the mites, and accelerates healing.

Rolled Oats for fast pain relief... It's not just for breakfast any more! Mix 2 cups of Rolled Oats and 1 cup of water in a bowl and warm in the microwave for 1 minute, cool slightly, and apply the mixture to your hands for soothing relief from arthritis pain.

Calculating cost to drive

Interesting website. Enter your address or just your zip code and your planned destination. If you're going to an airport, you can enter the name of the airport or its abbreviation (i.e. ewr for Newark Airport). Of course it's an estimate but a very good one.

Check it out at
http://www.costtodrive.com

1 year digital subscription to a magazine

I saw this posting on gadling.com

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Daily deal - 1 year digital subscriptions to many popular magazines

Feb 24th 2009

My daily deal for today is part freebie, part eco friendly deal. Through the "Read Green Initiative" you can sign up for a 1 year subscription to 100's of different magazines.

This is perfect if you want to save some trees, or if you want to lighten the load if your carry on bag on your next trip.

The magazines can be read through the Zinio online reader in your web browser, or through their offline reader which is available for Windows and Mac machines. Best of all, Zinio also offers specially formatted access for iPhone users, which could be a great way to kill some time at the gate.

The magazine lineup includes popular titles like Elle, Penthouse and Ebony. No credit card is required to sign up, and the only personal information you need to supply is your email address.

You'll find the magazines here, just be sure to click on the various topics on the left of the page to see more of the magazines on offer.

Youvenirs

I just saw this on gadling.com
I collect youvenirs, do you?

Do you collect souvenirs? Or "youvenirs?"

by Jeremy Kressman

Upon returning from many trips abroad, I find I am unable to part with what many would consider the "garbage" that accumulates during your travels. I'm not talking about banana peels or tissues - more like readily disposable items such as mass transit tickets, nightclub flyers and entrance passes to monuments.

For example, I have a used subway ticket from Stockholm that I like to keep in my messenger bag. Or there's the pack of playing cards I picked up in Buenos Aires. Each item is relatively mundane and not really worth displaying, yet it holds a highly personal story.

Every time I stumble upon these items again during my day-to-day life, it causes me to pause for a moment, remembering where the item came from and how I acquired it. For instance, I remember the 20 random minutes I spent in the crowded Stockholm subway station office trying to buy the tickets pictured above. Or that rainy day in Buenos Aires where we had nothing to do and decided to play poker, wandering around for about an hour in search of cards and trying to explain the concept of "playing cards" to local store owners in Spanish.

What do you do with these items? The more ambitious put them in scrapbooks, but I like to think of these disposable travel items as something altogether different - as "youvenirs." What is a youvenir you might ask? For me, it's any highly personal travel memento with little monetary value - that fleeting item that you've managed to hold onto because of a memorable experience or highly personal anecdote.

It's for this reason that a youvenir is fundamentally different than a souvenir. Souvenirs are items you purchased with the intention of remembering and commemorating your trip - that beautiful colored glass bottle, an embroided sweatshirt that says "San Francisco" or a jar of Spanish olives you bought in Madrid.

I find myself collecting fewer and fewer souvenirs these days - there's something about artificially buying an item just to remind me of a place that rings false. But a youvenir on the other hand is grounded in my personal experiences. As artists like Marcel Duchamp or Robert Rauschenberg have demonstrated, there is something profoundly interesting about everyday objects - something mundane and disposable yet incredibly meaningful depending on your personal context and experience with it.

I like to think that the more each of us travel, the less we acquire souvenirs so we can "brag" or give gifts to our friends and instead begin collecting youvenirs - items that have little monetary value but speak specifically to the unique emotions and experiences each of us attaches to travel.