5 Reasons I Started Shopping at Zulily

I have often seen ads for zulily.com but never checked it out until recently.  I was very pleasantly surprised and excited by the site.  It is a site where you can find the latest deals on things for women, kids, and the home from a variety of different vendors.  It is the type of site you check frequently, because the deals are only while supplies last, and the deals are for a limited time...usually about 3 days.  The items are discounted from regular price and the shipping costs are low.  You cannot return items, however, and you have to wait about 2 weeks to receive your purchases.  They have you "sign-up" so you have a log in and password, that this "membership" is free. 

 However, given those stipulations, I love so many things about it, I had to make a list...

1. Variety of Vendors and Items
We live in a fairly small city, and there are limitations to the variety of stores located nearby.  I tend to feel like I see the same things at all the stores.  But on Zulily, there are so many different vendors and the items are very UNIQUE.  In addition to having clothes, they also have toys, books, LEGOs, furniture, wall hangings, rugs, kitchen gadgets, boots, etc.  

2. Variety of Sizes
You can get unique clothing, shoes, lingerie, etc. for a wide range of sizes.  They have several plus sized vendors that have very nice clothing, of good quality, and a variety of styles (work, evening, lounge-wear, etc). 

3. Good Quality
The items I have received from them are of good quality and material, much better than if I bought them at a local discount store. 

4. Unique Categories: organic, gluten free/casein free, special needs
My son is in the autistic spectrum and he eats a gluten free/casein free diet to help manage his symptoms.  In the last month that I have been monitoring the site, they have had an Enjoy Life event for gluten free, allergy friendly food; many clothing events that have used organic cotton; and even a "special needs" event where they sold compression shirts, vibrating cushions, and chewy toys for kids.  

5. Latest Fashion and Toys
I was somewhat concerned that if these were "deals" they would be outdated clothing styles.  The merchandise they offer is always up to date for fashion and relevancy.  For example, they currently have many events carrying leggings, tunics, infinity scarves, and high boots for women.

A Fun Way to Learn History: History Detectives PBS

I have always loved to learn about history through "the story" of a person or community.  I think this is why I like historical fiction.  I read about the story of a character or family, but set in a period of history that is intriguing and perhaps new to me. 

I recently found History Detectives on PBS.  It is not a new show, but a new discovery for me.  Each hour long show includes 3 historical mysteries that are investigated.  Rather than a story of a person, the investigation centers around a piece of memorabilia, document, artwork etc that may have some connection to an important part of American history.  Some of the episodes include pieces from the old west, the suffragette movement, the Titanic, and the earliest airplanes.  It is somewhat reminiscent of Antiques Roadshow in that people bring in things that have passed down their family or things they purchased at estate sales, but in this case you actually learn the story behind the antique or piece of memorabilia presented and its place in history.  All past episodes of History Detectives are available at this link.

Stuff You Missed In History Class: Review of Show

I have always been a music lover, and typically when I am grocery shopping, cooking, or driving in the car, I like to listen to music.  No talk radio for me. 

However, lately I have been listening to podcasts from HowStuffWorks.com.  They have several different types of shows and podcasts, and I can't wait to check out the different topics. 

But for now, I am hooked on the show called "Stuff You Missed in History Class."  A few days ago, I listened to the episode about the Voynich Manuscript.  It is a document described as "a mysterious, undeciphered manuscript dating to the 15th or 16th century."

Many of the shows on this history podcast include some type of mystery or some unearthed information about historical events that not everyone may know.  This document has words on it that look like a language, but linguists feel that there are specific things about it that don't act like a language.  Others feel it is a type of cypher or code, but the code breakers have been unable to crack the code either.  Another theory is that it is a hoax of some kind.  It has tested out as a very old document, but the language itself may have been made up jibberish for whatever reason. 

There are many other good podcasts for this show on the site including one on Johnny Appleseed, a New England witch trial, and the invention of the sewing machine.  They are each about 30-45 minutes long and make for good listening while grocery shopping!

You might want to check out the How Stuff Works app.  That is how I do all of my listening to the show. 

What is your favorite historical time?  Did you learn about it in history class?

Failure Before Success

Every now and then I try to put "failure" into perspective.  Many times, our failures can assume gigantic proportions.  We may think about them so much that they come to define us or seem to predict the future.  But many successful people first faced a multitude of rejections--only later, overcoming them all.  Just take a look--





Thomas Edison was told by his teachers that he was "too stupid to learn anything." Once in the workplace, he was fired from his first two jobs for low productivity. Although he successfully invented the light bulb, it took 1,000 unsuccessful attempts before finding a bulb that worked. 

Oprah Winfrey was fired from one of her early jobs because she was "unfit for TV." 

Walt Disney was fired by a newspaper editor because "he lacked imagination and had no good ideas."  
 
Michael Jordan was cut from his high school basketball team, a blow that felt devastating.  Later, however, with great success, he stated "I have missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I have lost almost 300 games. On 26 occasions I have been entrusted to take the game winning shot, and I missed. I have failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed."

J.K. Rowling, author of the Harry Potter series, was a divorced, single mother on welfare while she was attending school and writing.  Within a span of 5 years, her life changed completely.

Henry Ford is famous in the car industry even though he was not an instant success. His early businesses failed, leaving him penniless five times before he founded the successful Ford Motor Company.

Fred Astaire was described at his first screen test as someone who "Can't act. Can't sing. Slightly bald. Can dance a little."

Colonel Sanders of Kentucky Fried Chicken did not have immediate success selling chicken.  Just the opposite--his secret chicken recipe was rejected 1,009 times before a restaurant wanted to use it.

Van Gogh sold only one painting during his lifetime.  He created over 800 works but was never successful as a painter.  There were even times that he was starving.  Today his works bring in hundreds of millions of dollars.

The actor Sydney Poitier grew up poor in the Bahamas.  When he began acting, he was advised by a casting director to become a dishwasher.  "Why don't you stop wasting people's time and go out and become a dishwasher or something?"

The Beatles had recorded 15 sons with Decca Recording studios before studio execs said "we don't like their sound, and guitar music is on the way out. They have no future in show business."

Stephen King, writer, received 30 rejections for his work Carrie.  He gave up for a while, until his wife urged him to send it in one more time. 

Zane Grey, popular author in the 1900's, was initially a dentist.  He hated his work and began to write adventure stories.  He was met with repeated rejections and was told that he should give up writing.  He finally saw his first work published at age 40.  He ultimately had 90 published works, and sold over 50 millions copies around the world.

 

Before Elvis made a name for himself, the manager of the Grand Ole Opry fired him after only one show.  The manager said, "You ain't goin' nowhere, son. You ought to go back to drivin' a truck."

Winston Churchill is now known as a Nobel Prize-winning diplomat.  He was elected twice as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and was a headliner during WWII.  However, as a youngster he  struggled in school and failed the sixth grade. As an adult, he saw years of political failures.  He was defeated in every election for public office until he became Prime Minister at the age of 62.  

 

Dr Seuss tried to publish his first book but was rejected by 27 publishing companies.  Today, he is a favorite of young and old alike.  

 

Babe Ruth of home run fame (714), held the record for strikeouts (1,300) for decades.  When asked about this he simply said, "Every strike brings me closer to the next home run."

 

Do It Yourself Art for Home

Sometimes I get a spurt of creativity and can think of so many ideas for decorating, cooking, and making new things.  Other times, I need a little help.  I was trying to think of ways to create artwork for home, and was stumped. 

I came across this article on BuzzFeed and love nearly every one of their 39 ideas (with photos).  39 Easy DIY Ways to Create Art For Your Walls

I love the simplicity of these doilies with orange thumb tacks.

Or the quirky fun of this magnetic scrabble game that you can

actually play...a little bit each day.

And definitely love this old windowframe turned into a picture frame. 

Which one is your favorite?

Synesthesia: Your Name Tastes Purple

Synesthesia is present when an individual experiences one sensation as connected with other sensations, a somewhat mixing of the senses.  A man with synesthesia may say "There aren't enough points on the chicken" when eating dinner.  This man explains that he tastes shapes. Another synesthete may explain that when she hears music, each note is associated with a specific color. 

Letters and words may also be described as associated with a particular color. 

Recently, the synesthete and pastery chef Taria Camerino was a contestant (and winner) on Food Network's show Sweet Genius.  She seemed to have an advantage with combining flavors although a disadvantage with visual presentation of her food.  You see, she explained "I'm not a visual person."  Taria tastes color, but then when visually organizing her food, she had a hard time capturing the given theme because she didn't see things the same way as the judge and other contestants.

If you are interested in finding out more, check out this book at Amazon.com 

The Man Who Tasted Shapes

Jim Denevan: Artist in Sand, Earth, and Ice

Jim Denevan loves many things--surfing, cooking, movement, spirals, and the land.  He creates large scale drawings, freehand with no measuring aids, all within the canvas of the land itself.  He loves to create in the sand--artwork that is then photographed and gone.  He uses a rake or a piece of driftwood and walks for hours, sometimes up to 30 miles to create a complex geometric drawing.  

He has also used an ice canvas for his creations.  In 2010, he created spiral of circles along a Fibonacci curve.  The circles were as small as 18" and up to several miles in diameter.  The location was Lake Baikal in Siberia. 

This video is a wonderful look into his process:

Jim Denevan: Artist of the Land 

Life-Size Lego House

Guinness Book of World Records: Largest Life-Size House made from interlocking plastic bricks

My house is a house full of LEGO bricks, but this was a house made from LEGO bricks.  According to the Guinness website, it was created by James May in the United Kingdom in September of 2009.  1200 volunteers also worked to build this house which used 2.4 million LEGO bricks internally supported by a wooden structure. The house had two floors and four rooms. 

One of the rooms was a bathroom with a functioning sink. 

Wonderful details included a multi-colored window that let in the natural light.  May spent one night in the house on a bed made entirely of LEGOs; he discovered that a LEGO roof leaks!

World Records: Anamorphic Painting

For those interested in the unusual and mind boggling, you might enjoy visiting the Guinness World Records google page or website (http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com). 

It gives you that feeling of "Oh!  I never knew that before.  I've never seen that before!  Hmmmm."

Here is an example of a world record--  The Longest anamorphic painting. 

This picture doesn't do it justice.  Visit the Guinness site at Longest Anamorphic Painting for the best photo.  An anamorphic painting is one that uses unusual proportions or perspective to bring about an effect.  3-D street art is an example.  This street picture was unveiled in India Quay, London, UK, to celebrate Guinness World Records Day, on 17 November 2011.  It measures 106.3 m (348 ft 9 in) and was created by Joe Hill of 3D Joe and Max (both UK).