Are there many modern conventions greater than the mighty Post-it?  Here are just a few reasons why I love the yellow (or green, or pink, or neon) sticky buggers:

1.  Post-its are great for list-making and labeling--Post-it on your fridge--"MILK"!  Stick it on your purse to remind yourself not to forget tampons!  Put it on your lunch at work so that people stay the hell away from your leftovers! 

2.  Post-its are fantastic for making you look busy and important--I have stickies all over my desk!  To remind me of things!  That MUST get done!  It's on a Post-it, for god's sake, so it must be URGENT!

3.  Post-its make me look like I give a sh*t about what people are saying to me--Uh-huh, yeah!  Of course!  72!  Perfect!  Yep, I've written it down!

Why do you love Post-its?
Posted by The Naked Redhead

I'm taking the plunge. In the spirit of Sarah Von and TNR, I'm going to make a list of things I want to do before I turn 28. I've given myself a couple handicaps—for instance, I don't turn 27 until this August, so I have a little more than a year; and I've already done #1—but I figure sharing this with you guys will help keep me on track.

1. Get nose pierced
2. Take belly dancing lesson(s)
3. Work with a voice coach
4. Play my way through an entire piano book
5. Actually get our band together and perform at least once
6. Build something on my own
7. Finish a book draft
8. Submit book proposal to agents
9. Throw out the first pitch at a minor-league baseball game
10. Get tattoo commemorating dance
11. Dance with Noah in public
12. Volunteer at the women's shelter
13. Volunteer at the cancer center
14. Volunteer in the NICU
15. Finish and go live with Fierce Beagle facebook page
16. Produce another podcast
17. Record another essay for NPR
18. Compete in another sprint triathlon
19. Successfully grow food
20. Visit a North Carolina beach
21. Camp at a primitive site on Stone Mountain
22. Learn three songs on piano by heart
23. Become a proficient bass guitar player
24. Express appreciation for our volunteer fire department
25. Submit an essay or article to one national publication
26. Host afternoon tea
27. Make a quilt
28. Sew my own dress

I'll keep you guys posted on my progress, but for some inspiration, how about you tell me something you're proud you accomplished? Or how about something you hope to accomplish?

Posted by Erin of The Fierce Beagle

Because OF COURSE one day I’ll gain the power to bring back dudes from the dead who want nothing more than to break bread with me. Also, unless they’re really into vegan barbecue chili, let us assume I’m catering the affair with my life’s savings.

PG Wodehouse: Even though he was the single greatest humorist of the 20^th century, I’d like to think I wouldn’t badger him with questions or incessant praise. The man has not only changed my life, but probably saved it. I’d just want to feed him a good meal and let him enjoy it in peace.

Vladimir Nabokov: He always said that the key to his work is the afterlife – here’s my chance to find out! As a tribute to his unique writing process, I’d have the evening’s menu printed on index cards and allow him to shuffle courses to determine what was served when.

Ryan North: Writer of Dinosaur Comics and, in my book, current frontrunner for leading humorist of the 21^st century. And, more importantly, the fellow who gave me the gift of the word “dudes”. No, seriously, he dedicated a Dinosaur Comic to me about it a few years ago. Even though there’s no way in heck that he remembers it, that alone nets him a spot at the table.

Hugh Laurie: One of the most dangerously sexy and brainy men in Hollywood. He also portrays both of my long-time imaginary boyfriends: Gregory House and Bertie Wooster. And something tells me he'd be as psyched as I to meet Wodehouse.

Oprah Winfrey: Screw light banter: the Empress of Self-Empowerment would have some amazing career advice for a headstrong, artsy 20-something. Plus, she’d totally bring the hostess gift to end all hostess gifts.

Too bad my table only seats six, or else I could have shipped in Alec Baldwin as a little eye candy. Who’s sitting around your fantasy table?

Posted by TKOG from That Kind Of Girl.

I am a woman of many principles. Unfortunately, I'm not the most disciplined disciple in the world. Here are some things I feel strongly about but haven't yet mastered the logistics.


Using reusable bags. I have many, but I have yet to figure out a place to keep them that will trigger my memory as I'm headed out the door. Remembering for groceries is easier, but shopping at department stores or the pharmacy? Hard. And yet every time I walk out of a store with a plastic bag in hand, I glumly contemplate the environmental and biological consequences of my forgetfulness.

Recycling. Ever since I was an elementary schooler in the perpetually drought-afflicted and highly populated Los Angeles county, I've been stringent about water conservation and recycling. I'm still a stickler for faucet control, but where I live now, recycling pickup isn't even offered. I need to come up with an easy way and location for storing recyclables at my house, then schedule a weekly drop-off.

Eating organic, locally grown food/free-range, grass-fed meats. This one isn't actually so much about remembering as it is an issue of affordability and convenience. I don't eat that much meat anyway, but I'm a strong believer that omnivores like us could and should do better than farm factories. And pesticides/insecticides? Yikes.


Dog training. I have two dogs: a four-year-old beagle/shepherd mix, and a three-month-old beagle/Corgi mix. They're both pretty decent behavior-wise (no desperate calls to the Dog Whisperer are in order) but I have dreams of them being therapy dogs. Achieving that would take a lot more discipline on my part.

What about you? What do you preach but have a hard time practicing?

Posted by Erin of The Fierce Beagle

I'll admit it...there are times I really enjoy being a curmudgeon.  And then something so fantastically cute will happen that I have to smile and say, "Awww..." and my little Grinchy heart has a growth spurt.  Here are a few things that tickle me and warm my cold, cold heart:

1.  My little cat--My female cat has one of those cat personalities I like to call "cold observance."  BUT, every morning as I go to put on my make-up, she jumps on the counter and watches me and talks occasionally.  "Mah?" she'll say, as I powder my face.  I reply, "What are you doooinnnnggg?" while she walks across the counter to the other side (to get a better look, I presume).  "Mah?" she'll repeat, and then we play the game all over again.  Stupidly adorable and I love it.

2.  Kids in a wagon--I'm not especially fond of children.  I mean, they're fine, but it's not like I'm lining up at the Small Person Store to buy one.  The other day, though, the local day care was taking their class of little ones (less than two, I'd say) out for lunch.  They had had 'em strapped into two big red wagons and were pulling them along to McDonalds.  Each child was being SO good, and since the day was lovely, they all tilted their faces to the sun and let the wind ripple their fine baby hair.  Oh my...where is the Small Person Store???

3.  My grandmother--My grandmother is a hilarious lady.  Even at 89, she is WITH it.  In fact, she often carries a hand-held Tetris game so that she can play to "keep her mind sharp."  She knows every other old lady in her church, and every day, she calls a few of them up and just talks to them to keep them company.  She remembers the names of their children and their children's children, and can often even remember among those who is sick with what or which one is going to college where.  She can't walk well any more, but she rules the roost from behind her walker...AND her computer  She was on Gmail before most of the world, loves Facebook, and has recently acquired her very own digital camera.  She enjoys taking pictures of the fam, uploading them to Facebook and tagging everyone.  She is awesome.


What are the things that tickle you?

Posted by The Naked Redhead

In a downright Herculean effort to be more ladylike (wait, contradiction much?), I’ve started springing for the occasional manicure. As a result, waved goodbye to my lifelong nail-chomping habit. While the results look lovely and save me literally tens of calories from re-ingesting my own torn-off cuticles, the life change isn’t without its drawbacks:

You become a percussion machine. Hey everybody on the bus! Wanna hear me absent-mindedly clack out the opening chords to “Hey Jealousy” like sixteen times in a row? WELL TOO DANG BAD.

It’s virtually impossible to keep long nails clean. You inevitably end up with a slash of black crud neatly splitting the pearly white nail and pink nailbed. The result rather gag-inducingly reminds me of neopolitan ice cream. And you know something’s got to be gnarly when it makes ice cream seem gross.

Two words: accidental S&M. Yeah, it’s all fun and games until somebody punctures a scrotum.

Unless they’re painted and nicely filed, they make you look like some sort of unkept rural chipmunk-shooter. They’re downright unsightly, dude. Look to your heart. You know it to be true.

You are ordained as a grand saint of scalp massages. Sounds great in theory, sure, but in application there are only two possible results to this. Either you massage someone else’s scalp and have to pry the accumulated dandruff from under your nails with a dang ice pick, or you discover you can give yourself world-rocking scalp massages, then are suddenly incapable of doing something as simple as writing a dang SSoLA list without – whoa, wait, what were we talking about?

Yeah, I give myself another two weeks, tops, before I turn these babies into a mid-morning snack. What do you love or hate about long nails?

Posted by TKOG from Not That Kind Of Girl.

Not to be a downer, but I figure getting these off my chest would be a good thing.

Getting into a really great TV show on DVD then realizing the end is near. Bonus points for falling in love with a show that was prematurely canceled.


Being tricked by a book. Most good editors won't allow a writer to pull the wool over the reader's eyes. A good twist is one thing; a lie or withholding information for the sake of shock is another. Also, books with a lot of back matter can lead you to believe you've got more of the story when what you really have are end notes.


Thinking you've got your financials in order. This inevitably leads to a broken-down car, medical bills, a student loan coming out of the woodwork, a hefty list of expensive textbooks for the next semester, an unexpected vet bill, etc.

That one recurring dream where you have to take a final for a class in which you totally forgot you had enrolled. For me, inevitably, it's a math class. Also, I once forgot to do a take-home portion of an advanced algebra test. In college. So my math-class stress dreams are actually validated by real experience.

What really hits you in the pit of the stomach?

Posted by Erin of The Fierce Beagle

OK, so the title was a little harsh, but as I've been doing some research on the old Interwebz, I've run into some website/blog trends that drive me batty.  Here are a few of my webby pet peeves (and what I say to myself when I see them):

1.  Dude, Your Sh*t is Everywhere--Some websites give me an aneurysm as soon as I land on the page.  Oh my...all the ads with your free this and contact me that.  Oh!  And don't forget the abnormally large picture of your face!  DELETED.

2.  Dude, I Can't Effing Find Your Subscription Button--After looking at almost 100 different sites today, I quickly learned that each site gets about three seconds of my time to have a really visible SUBSCRIBE button.  And no, I do NOT want to subscribe via e-mail.  I love my Google Reader and I'm trying to find a loophole in the constitution to marry it.  WHY would I want something through e-mail?  Hm?  HM?  That would be CHEATING on my fiance.  So please, that little orange stripey button?  I need to see it.  Immediately.  Thanks.

3.  Dude, You Haven't Posted in Like, Three Years--Yeah, I know people can get side tracked and stuff, and blogs get abandoned, but seriously...why are you still pimping that thing on other sites, like recently??  That's like going to Vegas and trying to get people to sleep with your grandmother.  It's both wrong and gross.  Stop it.


What are your interwebz pet peeves?

Posted by The Naked Redhead

See also: how to bust your budget and give your dear mama a heart attack at the same time. Frankly, I don’t understand half of the things modern brides spend their hard-earned $$$ on. Traditions with which I like to imagine I’d dispense at my own (very hypothetical) wedding:

Bridal Shoes: Why drop hundreds of dollars on shoes you might only wear once? I’m getting married in my trusty men’s size-medium Rainbows. (Oh stop clutching your heart, mom. I’ll slip on a throwaway pair of Payless pumps for the photos you’re in.)

Band or DJ. Look, guys, I don’t dance. Ergo, there will be no (formal) dancing at my wedding. iPod playlist of ambient music for the win. And maybe later, when everyone’s drunk, some enterprising young guest will pump the volume and get a little impromptu dance-off started.

Flowers: What better way to commemorate the immortal union of two loving souls than to commit ruthless and expensive genocide on a few hundred specimens of local flora? Oh wait. My wedding party’s going to be strolling down that aisle bearing bouquet and boutonniere arrangements of origami calla lilies folded from the pages of their favorite books.

Non-Edible Wedding Favors: I love you, dude, but you’re just giving us something to feel guilty when we throw away a few years later.

With all the money I save: the most earth-shattering cake and food ever. Most brides want guests to, as they leave, exclaim: “She looked so beautiful!” Screw that. I want ‘em to cry, “Who the frig catered that?!” What are or were your wedding corner-cuts and priorities?

Posted by TKOG from Not That Kind Of Girl.