WANT AD

I have a friend and reader that is looking for some used golf club sets for her two boys. They are both right-handed. They are 13 years old and about 5'1" in height. If you have used clubs to get rid of that might work for them, let me know. I'll connect you with the potential buyer. Anybody else looking for anything or have something to get rid? Let me know and I'll post it here.

SAVING SITES

I found these cost saving tidbits in an issue of Oprah magazine:

Check out fatwallet.com, an online community for bargain hunters, features coupons, savings alerts and rebate information. Dealhunting.com, couponcabin.com and naughtycodes.com have codes to enter at checkout for discounts on purchases or free shipping.

Bring your toner cartridge back to Staples and receive $3 off the purchase of anything in the store or online.

Use free open source software, downloadable via the Internet. For instance, GIMP, an image-producing, photo retouching program similar to Photoshop, is available at no charge at gimp.org. Find other sources of free software at sourceforge.net. And of course Google offers a variety of free options to manage documents, calendars, spreadsheets and photos.

Into Twitter? Then check out CheapTweet.com and coupontweet.com, they scan Twitter for bargains so you don't have to spend the time yourself looking for savings. There's also a site localtweeps.com that's a website designed to help users find local people and businesses that are using Twitter. Those businesses then can offer specials to those following their "tweets."

You got any good sites or deals to share? Please leave a comment or send me an email.

ART ON THE BLUFFS ART WALK

Just wanted to take a moment to plug an event I've been helping work on. That's Columbia's Art on the Bluffs Art Walk scheduled for Saturday, October 3rd from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. I won't go into too much detail here because you can click on the title, name of event or link to get more information on the details of the event. But here's a quick synopsis: Over 50 artists displaying and selling their art in businesses along Main Street and outside along the path, musical entertainment at a variety of venues, food booths, kids activities, wine tasting, classic car show and student galleries. Come on, check out the blog, become a follower and mark your calendars now to attend!

A LITTLE EDITORIAL ON HAREM PANTS

Ok, I don't make a habit of using my shopping blog to provide commentary on today's fashion trends. But this one, I just couldn't let go by. JUST SAY NO! Harem pants, remember those scary bottoms from the 80's? Supposedly they're BACK! I was perusing the pages of a Lucky Magazine and InStyle magazine a couple weeks ago and both magazines had a feature on Harem Pants return. Oh yeah, they showed them on skinny, tall models and while an argument might be made that they didn't look hideous on them (come on, nothing really looks hideous on a skinny, tall model) they did look RIDICULOUS! Now just imagine them on you or me - now that crosses over to HIDEOUS and RIDICULOUS (at least on me). So, if you find yourself thinking you'd welcome such a blast from the past, remember my wise words "JUST SAY NO". Hey, let me know what you think of harem pants and what other trends just shouldn't make a return!

THE 411 on 211

We've all heard of 411 and 911 but have you heard about 211? Call the United Way 211 and find help or volunteer, get the answers you need and get on the right track.

2-1-1, unlike 911, is NOT the number you cal for fire, police or emergency needs. Instead, United Way 2-1-1 IS a toll-free phone number connecting people with available community resources and volunteer opportunities.

By simply dialing 2-1-1, you can now make one call to find or give help. No more wasted time trying to find the right resource. You will reach a trained, caring professional 7 days a week, 24 hours a day. All calls are confidential. They will provide referrals to valuable health and human services in your area. Such services s basic human needs like food pantries, shelters, rent or utility assistance. Also physical and mental health resources such as Medicaid, Medicare, crisis intervention, support groups, counseling, alcohol and drug rehab. There's support for seniors and those with disabilities, children, youth and families.

You can also volunteer through 2-1-1 to volunteer centers, mentorship opportunities, locations to donate food, clothing, furniture, computers and other items. There's volunteering to fit your needs such as one-time, long-term, permanent, part-time or group volunteering opportunities.

Note, if 2-1-1 is not yet active with your phone provider, you can reach the 2-1-1 center by dialing 1-800-427-4626. You can also get more info at www.211southwestillinois.org.

YARD SALE ACROSS THE SOUTH

We went, we shopped, we conquered! Just got back from The Highway 127 Yard Sale, aka The World's Longest Yard Sale or The Yard Sale Across the South. For those of you who haven't heard me talk about this before, its an over 650 mile yard sale that runs from Ohio to Alabama along Route 127. This year we (that would be Kathy Schopp, yes, that's her name, and I) started at Crossville, TN (approx. halfway between Nashville and Knoxville) and headed north, ending in Frankfort, KY.

One of our favorite stops was Clarks Range, TN. They had a huge flea market there and just a lot of individual yard sales and markets. Too many to visit them all. A fun side "bonus" was that while we were at the huge flea market there we came across the team from HGTV taping their yearly special covering the yard sale. It was fun to watch them filming and to see them in person. Did we end up on camera. We unfortunately aren't featured but you may see us lurking in the background if we don't end up on the cutting room floor (which I imagine is where we'll end up). None the less, it was a kick!

So what did we buy? Well, we didn't buy any "big pieces" which was really the only disappointment of the trip. We usually come home with a piece or two (or five) of furniture but we thought they were a bit light on large items this summer. Maybe we just didn't see what we were looking for though. We did find more than enough small items to buy. I bought a snail made out of metal parts to put in the yard/garden. One this size new usually goes for around $50 but I nabbed mine for $7, it was my first buy on Thursday at 7:19 a.m. My son collects stoneware mugs and steins from Germany. Those usually run anywhere from $10 on up at an antique store/mall but I got one for just $1, two for $4 each and splurged on the last one at $11, that totals $20 for an average of $5 each. I done good. I love pottery from the 30's, 40's and 50's and picked up three pieces. One is a turquoise blue California Poppy piece that I got for $13 (bargained them down from $18), a creamware rabbit planter for $3 (a steal) and a small creamware dish for $3 (note, wear your glasses when shopping, I didn't have mine on and thought it said $8 and asked if they would take $5, they laughed, told me it was $3 and we had a funny story). I picked up a cool old Retro Red Rotary Phone for 50 cents and the prize for most unique item would go to the porcelain arm/hand I purchased for $12. It's an unused form used to make latex gloves from an old factory. I plan to use it to hold necklaces, bracelets and rings on my dresser (I think). I also collect antique handblown green glass bottles/pitchers/vases and I found two at $2 each. My friend bought a set of six "game" (that's as in birds that are hunted) plates and to protect the innocent (from her husband) I won't tell you what she spent. She also picked up some small items such as crocks for as little as $3 each.

We were gone 3 nights and shopped the sale for two full days. The heat is usually brutal and we come prepared with little fans that spray water on you, hats and wet washcloths but the weather was lovely and we didn't have any problems keeping cool. And the scenery traveling north through Tennessee into Kentucky is beautiful. We passed over the dam at Cumberland Lake and it was beautiful.

The sale is always the first weekend (Thurs. through Sun.) in August so start making your plans for next year now!