I'm really having trouble with this mouse!

My grandmother had her first spin on a PC the other day. The motivation: online slot machines. First, I should tell you my grandmother loves the slot machines at Dover Downs. When her 80 year old friend told her she could play the slots online for free, my grandmother just had to try. So my mom set her up and here are a few things I overheard:

Grandmother: "I'm really having trouble with this mouse!"
"Can I just tape it down?"
"That's where I have trouble getting it down there."
"See I lost that thing again. get down there!"



Then last night when she came over for dinner with my grandfather and her friend, the first thing she asked was to play on the computer. Here are a few more things I heard as she clicked away:

Grandmother: "I'm trying to get the hang of the mousy mousy"

"Oh, I have more trouble with this guy."

"I don't understand it, it's not doing anything."
Grandmother's 80 yr old friend: "Are you out of money?"

gm: "I don't know what I'm betting, but those credits go fast"

gm's f: " I don't know what you're betting either."

gm: "Now I lost it (mouse) completely."
gm's f: "Move it, you'll find it."

Now my mom will have to let her play everytime she comes over. Somehow I think that's all she'll ever learn online. So I won't hold my breath for an e-mail, though her 80 year old friend does e-mail me.

Stylishly yours,
Miss Attitude

How many people share your name?

I've always known there are more than a few people with the exact same name as me. But I couldn't tell you exactly how many until now. According to howmanyofme.com there are 16 in the United States. And here are 1,418,815 people with the same first name, which isn't all that surprising since I know I have a common first name. In fact, statistically it's the 21st most popular first name. Click below to try your name:

HowManyOfMe.com

There are 16 people with my name in the U.S.A. How many have your name?

And just for fun I tried Miss Attitude. Guess what? It looks like I might be the one and only. The site says there are one or fewer people in the U.S. named Miss Attitude and there are fewer than 335 people in the U.S. with the last name Attitude. There's also a spot on this fun little site where you can check famous names too. For instance there are only 5 Brad Pitts, only 1 Angelina Jolie, 1,129 Sarah Parkers (no way to check middle name) and only 1 Chris Noth (Mr. Big).

Stylishly yours,
Miss Attitude

P.S. I'm sorry I couldn't do better than a Meme today, but I went to the beach earlier and now it's hard to concentrate with the family here for dinner;)

I'll have a Corona cowboy hat please!

Have you ever seen one of these?



It's a beer box cowboy hat. Last night when I walked into a bar, I spotted this woman wearing one.



I had never seen one before. And then when I looked across the bar, I spotted more people wearing them.



We asked the bartender and found out some guy was selling them for $25. One of my friends really wanted a Corona one. So she went over to ask and found out all they had was Coors Light and Miller Lite. No dice. She was set on the Corona.

So today I went online and Googled it. I was surprised to see there are several sites that sell these beer box hats and apparently $25 is the going rate. There's Beer Hats Online and Gags and Goods. but still no Corona. Maybe she'll just have to build her own on this site. You get an eBook and beer box hat templates for only $9.97!

Stylishly yours,
Miss Attitude

The boardwalk

I just got back from the boardwalk in Ocean City, MD. The ocean breeze was nice considering it was still 85 degrees outside at 10 p.m. It's been quite a while since I've walked the boardwalk at night. I have such fond memories of the boardwalk from my childhood, again in my teens and again in my early 20's when I lived here (and of course was legal drinking age.) If you've never been here before, there are tons of bars, restaurants, stores, arcades and rides. My cell phone pictures unfortunately don't do it justice. Since I still didn't get my Thrashers french fries (see post "OC here I come!" for yummy details) yet I know I'll be back again during the day and will snap a few more pics. But one of the things I like to do the most, well besides eat, is people watch. To be honest the crowd was pretty tame and not too many crazy people. This was probably the most amusing group we saw on the boardwalk.



Why would you do that? Have you never been on vacation before? Then there was a store offering henna tattoos. Too bad they don't know how to spell tattoo. Would they misspell the one you pay for?



If so, at least it's not permanent, right?

Stylishly yours,
Miss Attitude

Am I just rubbing it in?

So this is where I spent six hours yesterday, on the beach in Ocean City, MD. The weather was perfect. In the low 80's with a nice breeze, which is refreshing after the 90's and humidity in Tampa. Though today is supposed to be hotter. I didn't actually go swimming because the ocean is a little chilly for this Tampa girl. The gulf is like bathwater already. But did walk up along the water with my dad.

After a couple of hours, I had lunch with my parents at a tiki bar along with a few refreshing cocktails including a pina colada. Then my mother and I hit the beach again to get in another hour. This is the life!



One thing I love to do on the beach is people watch. The best one I saw today on the beach was a guy with a Mohawk. It looked like he had just shaved his head and the first thing I thought was "are Mohawks in style?" The second thing I thought was "I have to get a picture of this." Unfortunately the cell phone camera just wouldn't zoom in close enough. So when I saw him get up and go down to the water, I decided to follow. I figure with a camera phone people can't really tell what you're shooting. But I was too late, he'd already gotten it wet. And the zoom still wasn't enough, but this is him.

Sorry, you can't see it. But this guy was whiter than white so all I could think was his head was going to get sunburned! Well that and wonder if
Mohawks are in style. Or are Fauxhawks (Mohawk minus the shaving) more stylish? Or is stylish not a factor because you're trying to be a rebel? Either way I know I'll pass.


Stylishly yours,
Miss Attitude

True Floridians Know...

I don't usually forward these things, let alone post 'em on my blog. But I couldn't resist this one.

True Floridians Know...

1.. Socks are only for bowling.
2..You never use an umbrella because you know the rain will be over in five minutes.
3..A good parking place has nothing to do with distance from the store, but everything to do with shade.
4..Your winter coat is made of denim.
5..You can tell the difference between fire ant bites and mosquito bites.
6..You're younger than thirty but some of your friends are over 65.
6..Anything under 70 is chilly.
7.You've driven through Yeehaw Junction.
8..You could swim before you could read.
9..You have to drive north to get to The South.
10..You know that no other grocery store can compare to Publix.
11..Every other house in your neighborhood had blue roofs in 2004-2005.
12..You've gotten out of school early on Halloween to trick or treat before it got dark
13..You know that anything under a Category 3 just isn't worth waking up for.
14..You dread love bug season.
15..You are on a first name basis with the Hurricane list.
They aren't
Hurricane Charley, Hurricane Frances...but Charley , Frances ,
Ivan and Jeanne.
16..You know what a snowbird is and when they'll leave.
17..You think a six-foot alligator is actually pretty average.
18..You were 12 before you ever saw snow, or you still haven't.
18..'Down South' means Key West
20..You think New York drivers licenses should only be valid in New York .
21..Flip-flops are everyday wear.
22..Shoes are for business meetings and church,
23..but you HAVE worn flip flops to church before.
24..Sweet tea can be served at any meal.
25..An alligator once walked through your neighborhood.
26..You smirk when a game show's 'Grand Prize' is a trip or cruise to Florida
27..You measure distance in minutes .
28..You have a drawer full of bathing suits, and one sweatshirt.
29..You get annoyed at the tourists who feed seagulls.
30..A mountain is any hill 100 feet above sea level.
32. .You think everyone from a bigger city has a northern accent.
33..You know the four seasons really are: hurricane season, love bug season, tourist season and summer
34..It's not soda, cola, or pop.
it's coke, regardless of brand or flavor:
'What kinda coke you want?'
35..Anything under 95 is just warm.
36..You've hosted a hurricane party.
37..You go to a theme park for an afternoon, and know when to get on the best rides.
( Space Mountain during the Electric Light Parade!)
38..You understand the futility of exterminating cockroaches.
39..You can pronounce Okeechobee, Kissimmee , Ichnatucknee and Withlacoochee
40..You understand why it's better to have a friend with a boat than to own a boat yourself.
41..Bumper stickers on the pickup in front of you include: various fish, NRA, NASCAR, Go Gators, and a confederate flag.
42..You were five before you realized they made houses without pools.
43..You were 25 when you first met someone who couldn't swim.
44..You've worn shorts and used the A/C on Christmas.
45..You recognize Miami-Dade as ' Northern Cuba '.
46..You not only forward this joke to your friends but you understand it

Come on, you had to admit some were pretty funny!

Stylishly yours,
Miss Attitude

P.S. Since I'm actually from Maryland and up here this week, I want to share what I had for dinner last night. All you can eat steamed crabs.. yummy!

Less than 26 hours left

If you haven't voted for Courtney Courtney to win her dream wedding, please vote now. If you voted last week or even yesterday, you can still vote again. She and her fiance are currently in 3rd place, but we need her to get to first!



Click here to vote now.

Thanks for trying to help make this amazing young woman's dream come true.

Stylishly yours,
Miss Attitude

It's like waiting for a date to the prom...

As most of you know I've been major job search mode for the past three months. And while many of the people around me fortunately have not been laid off like me, several either know their jobs are not necessarily safe or are just looking for another challenge. It's hard to explain what the job search can do to your morale and mental health. And my intention here is not to get too serious, but to share that it's a delicate balance of handling rejection and still feeling confident about your abilities. And it's all about the waiting game. A couple days ago I received a job search update from a talented young woman I briefly supervised. I want to share one of her comments that made me laugh, but was also right on:


"I feel like I'm waiting for someone to invite me to prom or something. I have decided I don't really like job searching..it's quite annoying."

I also think I'm in rough shape if my job search is anything like my dates to the prom. Yes, I said dates. Let me explain. My first date was supposed to my boyfriend of several months, but he broke up with me a month before the prom. Then my second date was a friend of a friend. He turned out to be a little crazy and I had to cancel on him despite the fact he'd already ordered his tux. A girl's gotta protect herself. So my third and actual date was another friend of a friend. And to say it was a disaster was an understatement. My dad called him by the wrong name, I spent most of the night avoiding him and let's just say he went around the after-party telling all of my friends how I didn't like him. So please, let's hope my job search is more fruitful than my prom date search.

Stylishly yours,
Miss Attitude

OC here I come... before the ocean evaporates!

Tomorrow morning I'm heading to Ocean City, MD for vacation. I'll be spending a week going to the beach,



eating steamed crabs,



hitting the bars/restaurants including Seacrets


and of course hanging out with the family. I love Ocean City. I grew up going there for the summer as a kid, went to college about 45 minutes away and lived there for a while after I graduated. I think it's a pretty special beach resort. But I think the mayor has lost his mind. When my aunt told me about OC's new tourist campaign I thought she was kidding. Take a look:



All I can do is laugh. Does the mayor and his city council seriously think telling people the ocean is going to evaporate in a billion years is going to get people to head to the beach this summer? This may be my last chance? I think I've got about a billion more chances to go. But it did get the commercial on YouTube, so maybe the publicity is working. Either way, I plan on enjoying my vacation in OC. Bring on the steamed crabs and Thrasher's french fries!



I'll try and post some pics this week. And don't forget to check out my Twitter and Plurk updates for all the vacation fun.

Stylishly yours,
Miss Attitude

Does the environment want my dishes to be dirty?

The other day I bought Eco-friendly dishwasher detergent. I'm still a long way from tree-hugger status, but I try and do little things here and there. I use my "green" bags when shopping and I recently bought the energy saving light bulbs. But this recent purchase was a bust.




Palmolive's Eco+ Gel Dishwasher Detergent is a dud in my opinion. Not only are the dishes still not clean, it left a film of soap on everything. The first time I ran the dishwasher I thought maybe it was a fluke. So I've run two more loads since then. Nope, it just doesn't work. So I did something I rarely to. I went online and filed a complaint. In my submission I stated I wished I had never purchased the product as it was a waste of money. Here's the auto-response I got:

Thank you for contacting the Colgate-Palmolive Company with your feedback or question. We have received your e-mail and it is being forwarded to the appropriate parties. You can expect a reply from us within a few business days.


Sincerely,

Colgate-Palmolive

I want my money back. I wonder if that will happen. I'll keep you posted. In the meantime, if you've found an Eco-friendly detergent that works please let me know.

Stylishly yours,
Miss Attitude

(update 6/23/08) I received the following e-mail from the consumer affairs department:

Thank you for contacting us over the Internet about Palmolive Automatic Dishwasher Gel Eco+ Lemon Splash. Your interest in our products and company is greatly appreciated.

Your response involved material we wanted to send you, therefore the response has been sent via regular (postal) mail and should reach you within three weeks.

If you do not receive this response through regular mail, or have any questions about this, please contact us again by email, or by calling us at 1-800-468-6502, and provide the number appearing after my name below.

Once again, thank you for taking the time to contact us. We hope this information is helpful.

Mosquito home remedy update

Okay, I think all the itching has caused me to lose my mind. Some of my Pleeps (Plurk Users) suggested Windex in the last post. And I tried it and thought it was working. But alas, the relief only lasted a few minutes. So I decided to try the baking soda & water paste suggestion. (I wasn't going to waste money on meat tenderizer and had baking soda in the fridge!)



And here I'm embarrassingly going to share a picture of me putting it on one of my legs, which BTW has 26 bites!



I know I should be embarrassed for this post, like I said I think all this itching has gotten to me. It seems to be working *fingers crossed* So what's your home remedy for mosquito bites?

Stylishly (& covered in baking soda) yours,
Miss Attitude

P.S. You can read what my Pleeps are saying about the Windex idea here and here and finally the baking soda paste here.

I hate mosquitoes, why do they love me?

So I'm over my friend's house out by his pool. He invited a few people over, threw on the grill and we had a few beers. I'm having a good time, enjoying the night. And suddenly I see a pesky mosquito on my arm. I swat it away and don't see any blood, so I figure I'm safe. I ask him if he has any citronella candles because mosquitoes tend to like me. Maybe because I'm so sweet! Anyway, he lights two tiki torches and I head in the house to put on my swimsuit. Immediately I notice nearly a dozen mosquito bite son my left leg. Then I glance down to the right leg, there's another half dozen. Then I look at my arm. There are at least three bites. Guess that darn skeeter got me after all. Along with an army of his pesky friends.



So I head back outside and get in the pool because I figure I'm safe from any more mosquito bites in there. But the itching has already set in. One of the people there says I should go home and put meat tenderizer on the bites. What? I think I need more information.



She says you take meat tenderizer and add a little bit of water to make a paste. Then you put it on the bites. She says that just like on meat, it will break down the enzymes and relieve the swelling. I've never heard of it, but think I'd be willing to try it. I'm one of those people who can't stop scratching and makes it worse and the bites swell and last for more than a week.

I've repeatedly tried rubbing alcohol, aloe vera, Benadryl itch relief spray, etc. So I'm thinking a home remedy doesn't sound so bad. Of course it's too bad I don't have any meat tenderizer right now. I guess steak seasoning isn't the same, huh? So I wonder what else I may actually have at home that could do the trick? So I quickly Google Mosquito bite remedies. (What did I do before Google?) And here's what I come up with:

* Nail Polish
* Strong tea mixed with rubbing alcohol
* Toothpaste
* Mouthwash
* Vinegar (apply directly to bite or take a hot bath with 2 cups of vinegar in the water)
* Honey
* Underarm deodorant (solid or roll-on) - apply directly to bite area
* Rubbing Alcohol
* Ammonia
* Bleach
* Tea: Use a hot tea bag or a cotton ball soaked in hot tea to dab on bite area

Pastes: Mix these fresh then apply to bite as soon as possible. The consistency should be nice and thick so it won’t run, yet will still stay in place on the affected area. You could also spritz bite with water then apply grains/powders directly (generously) and rub them in.

* Baking Soda & Water
* Meat Tenderizer & Water
* Salt & Water
* Epsom Salt & Water (could also do this as a foot soak if it’s the ankle/foot area affected)
* Tums Tablets: crush and add a few drops of water
* Aspirin: crush then add a few drops of water
* Aspirin - crush then apply a few drops of rubbing alcohol



So I think I'm going to try the salt & water combo. I think it may do the trick. Because my friend's pool is salt water, not chlorine, and I already feel a little less itchy. We'll see how it works. If you've got a better home remedy, let me know.

Stylishly yours,
Miss Attitude

Vote for Courtney Courtney!

Please help an amazing Tampa woman win her dream wedding. Us Magazine has a contest underway for a couple to win a celebrity fantasy wedding worth up to $100,000. I want all of you to vote for Courtney Dempsey and Gary Courtney.



Why you ask? Well first of all, her name will be Courtney Courtney. I love that! The second reason is she's from Tampa. The third reason is she's a friend of a friend of mine. But here's the most important reason: She and her husband deserve the wedding of a lifetime.


Courtney Dempsey & Gary Courtney, Jr.

How did you meet?
"We were introduced through a mutual friend at a networking event. He was in a relationship, but I gave him my business card and told him to call me if things didn't work out. He called me the next day. Three years later, and we are still together."

Tell Us about your engagement.
"He surprised me with dinner on the beach while on vacation in Jamaica. After the salad course, he proposed. I cried for a solid 20 minutes before he said, 'You haven't looked at the ring or said yes!' He had our dessert plates say 'Mr. and Mrs. Courtney.'

Have you overcome in obstacles?
"I was told four years ago that I only had one year to live, as I was diagnosed with stage IV malignant melanoma. I have since had a double mastectomy with reconstruction, thyroid cancer and am currently under treatment for a lung condition. He has been with me throughout the pain, sleepless nights, constant medication and side effects — as well as the $39,000 in debt I have incurred from having cancer. Most men would run, but he is one in a million."

Which past celebrity wedding is your favorite and why?
"The one's that last! But I loved Eddie Murphy and Tracey Edmond's family theme."

Describe your Dream Wedding.
"On a beach, somewhere warm. A celebration of life: a big party with family and close friends. We'd want it to be laid back with the little things in life that make you happy, like cupcakes and French fries!"

Why should people vote for you?
"Because my name would be Courtney Courtney, for one reason! And it's nice to hear of a good, old-fashioned love story with all the stuff going on in the world. We have the 'for richer or poorer thing' as well as 'in sickness and in health thing' down pat. We remind people that their problems are not that bad and that you don't need material things to make you happy."

They've already beat out 4,000 other couples and need your help to win.
Click here to vote for the soon to be Mrs. Courtney Courtney. And please tell your friends. The leading three couples as of June 25 will be featured in a story in Us Weekly and advance to the next round!

Stylishly yours,
Miss Attitude

Mother- in-law problems

Hey don't forget Miss Attitude loves to give advice. Recently I've received quite a few difficult problems from some loyal readers. And today I want to share this one:


Hi Miss Attitude,

I have a problem. To make a long story short my mother in law is on disability because she has bipolar. She receives a check each month for around 600 dollars. She lives in a government place now for people with disability. Anyhow she is always coming to her kids and asking for money. The thing is her rent is only 100 a month plus utilities and she also receives food stamps. She absolutely refuses to get a job because she is scared she would lose her disability. She takes a lot of prescribed drugs and I believe she is hooked. But that is another story. The place she lives in is kicking her out because she has complained for 2 years that she doesn't like the rules so they have had enough and she has to move out. We found her a little trailer to move in. But now she is asking for money for her application. This is getting between my husband and me. I try to tell him that he is not teaching her responsibility by handing money to her every time she asks. She has 4 days until the beginning of the month when she gets her disability check but she will not wait. When she wants something it has to be now on her time. Then recently because of all this she calls her daughter and says she feels like killing herself. I take it as she will do anything to make everyone feel sorry for her and wrap all her kids around her finger. Help me am I just being mean? I told my husband if I took the check to her I am going to make her get dressed and go find a job. There is nothing wrong with being a greeter at Wal-Mart. But she refuses she would rather live in a trashy mobile home and feed of the government than get a job.


Dear Reader,
I’ve really done quite a bit of thinking about your mother-in-law problems, and no I don’t think you’re just being mean. But the answer is simply not as cut and dry as me saying, “Heck ya! She needs to get off her butt and get to work!” She is your husband’s mother and telling him how to treat her could possibly cause problems in your marriage. So you really need to ask yourself is it more important to make her earn her own money, which she probably isn’t going to do at this point, or keep the peace with your husband? If the money he’s giving her is money you don’t have to spare, then you do need to discuss a budget or allowance type situation for her, so she’s not constantly asking for me. There’s also the prescription drug problem which should not be ignored. If you think she’s addicted, then living on her own will most likely make it worse. It sounds to me like she needs professional help. You should discuss your concerns with your husband and suggesting she see a counselor or a doctor. I don’t think getting her to be a greeter at Wal-Mart will solve your problems if she doesn’t address her problems, whether they’re psychological or physical.

Stylishly yours,
Miss Attitude

Don't forget if you need advice, Miss Attitude can help. Send me an e-mail to missattitude@missattitude.us. I promise you will remain anonymous.

Cobert mocks Pasco County "Wizard" teacher

I read a story about a substitute teacher in Pasco County (that's here in the Tampa Bay area) who had been suspended for so-called wizardry last month. I thought the story was a little bizarre, but didn't think too much of it because hey it's Florida. Then yesterday a friend of mine sent me a clip of the Cobert Report's version of the story. I have to admit it's pretty amusing. Take a look:



And yes, that soundbite of the father in the hat is pretty common around here. "I don't want some guy teaching my kid wizardry. My kid needs to be learning, learning education in the school system." Yes, I'm sure a substitute teacher showing your kid a magic trick with a toothpick is the biggest worry of your life! Seriously?

Stylishly yours,
Miss Attitude

Welcome to the wonderful world of Plurk!

Ahh, Plurk! This is where I've been spending a lot of time during the past two weeks. Many of you have noticed the Plurk widget on my blog and want to know what it is. In fact, when I asked one of my friends a question in an e-mail yesterday she said, "i will tell you, if you tell me what in the sam hel* is plurk?"

So that's what I'm going to do. Before I go any further, I want to warn you this is addicting. Very addicting! In fact, I'm having such a hard time tearing myself away from Plurk just to write this blog. And I apologize to my Pleeps (Plurk users) if I don't quite capture the essence of said addiction. I know what some of you are saying right now, but you've already told us about your addiction to Twitter.

Plurk is better. I haven't quite abandoned Twitter yet, but it kept crashing and sent me on the search for a new social media site. And I couldn't believe my luck when I first read about Plurk. I actually sent a Tweet (a message on Twitter) asking if anyone was Plurking. And one of my friends saw it and signed up too. In fact, I really have Steven Russell to blame for my Plurk-aholism even though he gave it up.

Plurk is an acronym for Peace, Love, Unity, Respect, Karma. It's also an amalgam of Play + Work: Play-Work. Like Twitter it's a microblogging site where users send 140 character messages. But it also combines an IM feature which makes it highly interactive and entertaining. When you send a Plurk you have several options in how to write it.



There's a drop down menu of verbs to choose or you can freestyle. Plurk also has tons of cool emoticons.

Although, many you have to earn more Karma to get. What is Karma you ask? I call it the K-word.



Tons of people on Plurk are obsessed with the K-word. As you can see my score is above 56. That's pretty good for now. Here's a break down of how the K-word works.



If I've confused you so far, don't worry. It's really easy to use and if you get confused other Pleeps will help you out! That's one of the things I love most about this site. I've met a lot of really cool people on there. People who have taken pity on a poor soul like Miss Attitude who's not quite tech-savvy enough to get everything right the first time.

So have I sold you yet? Do you want to try it? I hope you will. Just click on this link . Or you can send me your e-mail address to missattitude@missattitude.us and I'll send you an invite. (I get cool emoticons for that too!)

Stylishly yours,
Miss Attitude

P.S. When you look up Plurk-aholic in the Plurktionary, you'll find my name!

What a nice surprise!

This weekend I received the most beautiful flowers from my friends at Skirt! I'm a featured blogger on the magazine's national website, known as a Skirt!setter. It's a lot of fun and many of the other bloggers, including Skirt! editors, read and comment on my blog frequently. And I truly enjoy reading the other blogs too. Last week I blogged about the feature in Marie Claire , just as I did here on my Website.

So to my surprise, Skirt! added a congrats to Miss Attitude on a slideshow on the homepage.

I was flattered to say the least. And then the flowers came. Here's a closer look.



The card read "Congratulations on being featured in Marie Claire! Good luck with your future endeavors.. your Skirt! friends are rooting you on!" I want to take this opportunity to thank them for the support. It's amazing how people I haven't even met in person can be so caring and generous. I see that a lot on the comments on this website too. I think that's probably one of the best things to come out of this difficult time. So thank you all and I hope you'll keep reading.

Stylishly yours,
Miss Attitude

What my dad taught me

To honor my father on this Father's Day I've decided to honor him with a list of some of the most important lessons he taught me when I was growing up.

1. If a girl pulls your pig tails, pull hers back.
2. Girls can do anything boys can do.
3. Always be respectful to your elders.
4. Play to win. If you don't win, be proud knowing you gave it your all.
5. Always do the right thing.
6. Work hard to get what you want.
7. Be independent.
8. How to drive a stick shift.
9. If you're going to argue, make sure you're right.
10. The basic rules of football.

Thanks for teaching me these things Dad! Happy Father's Day.

Stylishly yours,
Miss Attitude

P.S. My dad also taught me how to change the oil and a flat tire, but unfortunately I can't say that I remember how to do either of those. So I have Fix-A-Flat and a credit card.

P.P.S. The real gift is in the mail.

Bling Fling

Welcome to Bling Fling, well sort of. I hosted girls' night at my place last night and we had a blast. Wait, did you ask what is Bling Fling? Let me show you.



I asked everyone to gather up their unwanted & gently used accessories (i.e. purses, bracelets, rings, necklaces, scarves, etc.) The idea is you trade the items you don't use anymore for "new to you" accessories. Because let's face it ladies, must of us have accessories we've barely worn and won't wear again. Some probably still have tags on 'em. We actually had quite a few like that.



When I first suggested the idea someone asked, "What happens if two people want the same thing?" I hadn't really thought about it. Most of my girlfriends are easy breezy. I couldn't imagine a catfight. But she persisted that I would need rules. So here are the rules I came up with:



Bling Fling Official Rules
1. Each participant must write explanation for why she thinks she should be the one to receive a particular piece of Bling instead of other the other women.
2. Please keep submissions brief and as entertaining as possible.
3. Submissions will be anonymous and must be placed either a cup in front of item or inside large items.



4. After all submissions are completed the group will vote by a show of hands.
5. Winner must receive a majority of the votes. In the event of a tie, there will be a Bling-off.
6. In the event of a Bling-off, each woman will have 30 seconds to express why simply must have the item. Participants can use words, songs, charades, etc.
7. In the event certain items are ridiculously out of fashion, participants must limit mockery to a minimum.
8. At the end of the event, all unwanted items will be donated to The Spring of Tampa Bay.



Of course my friends were extremely nice and accommodating. If one of the girls really wanted something, the others would bow out. I actually had to encourage them to fight for the prize a little more. So we did have a few Bling-offs, which were very entertaining. They included the Gator chomp, sibling rivalry comments and me playing the "I'm unemployed" card. BTW, I won that round and a very cute makeup bag.



I'd say we all made out pretty well with our accessories. And I have a bunch of stuff to donate for a great charity. What a great way to spend a Friday night! I think you should try it sometime.

Stylishly yours,
Miss Attitude
www.missattitude.us