Be A Rock Star

Posted on December 30th, 2010 by Jean

How should I put this? Oh yeah. I’m a Rock Star! I racked my brain trying to decide on the perfect Christmas gift for my best friend. I was “this close” to sending her a bottle of red wine like last year, but none of the bottles spoke to me. I wanted something personal. Something that would knock her socks off.

The perfect gift ~ a hand-made Unofficial Glee(k) Calendar 2011. ^[1]

With help from Google Images and Shutterfly, I created a calendar a true Gleek, like my friend Joy, could love.

Shirtless Will Schuester graces January and August, so unfortunately Joy cannot display the calendar at work.

Her favorite month is July with scenes from The Rocky Horror Glee Show.

Her friends favor September with an Enquirer-like photo of Tina and Artie on vacation with “Ripped Old Man and Greasy Speedo Dude”.

The month of April reveals whether Coach Bieste is played by an actor or actress (spoiler alert!), and in December Joy and her husband can be cats like Rachel & Finn were in their 2010 calendar.

It’s not too late to be a Rock Star! Online calendar deals are popping up left & right. Personalize them with photos and details your friends will ooh and ahhh over. For ideas, here is Google Zeitgeist‘s Top Ten Most Popular People:
1. Justin Bieber
2. Lady Gaga
3. Kim Kardashian
4. Nicki Minaj
5. Miley Cyrus
6. Katy Perry
7. Lil Wayne
8. Taylor Swift
9. eminem
10. Megan Fox

Not into celebrities? How about Top Vacation Destinations. The Travel Channel lists 21 Mind Blowing Escapes, more than plenty to fill a 12-month calendar. Is your friend a Foodie? Feature photos of scrumptious dishes, desserts or cocktails. The possibilities are endless.

What photos would adorn your personalized calendar?

^{[1] JeanHasBeenShopping.com
(A)
(i) does not have actual knowledge that the material or an activity using the material is infringing;

(ii) in the absence of such actual knowledge, is not aware of facts or circumstances from which infringing activity is apparent; or

(iii) upon obtaining such knowledge or awareness, acts expeditiously to remove, or disable access to, the material;

(B) does not receive a financial benefit directly attributable to the infringing activity.}

Tags: calendar, Christmas, gift, Glee, Gleek, rock, star

Facebook Profile Hack

Posted on December 20th, 2010 by Jean

Artist Alexander Oudin is credited with creating the new Facebook phenomenon, profile hacking. In essence, beautifying fb profiles by cropping a single photo six times, tagging yourself in five, and making one your profile avatar.

Hundreds have jumped on the bandwagon, and the results are highly entertaining.

Applications are popping up to slice & dice your favorite photos, making a snazzy profile page. I used Pic Scatter to create mine using the awesome “Kitty In A Tree” picture from last week. Another app that looks handy is FBCrop.

If you’re like me, you’re going to ~~waste~~ spend a lot of your day uploading pics and playing around with these apps. Have fun, and let me know what you create!

Here are a couple I made yesterday while I could have been cleaning the house, watching football, and feeding my family.

Don’t blame me if you do not get all of your errands accomplished.

• Will you hack your FB profile?
• Would you rather friend request Burt Reynolds or Kim Kardashian’s Ass?
• Have you finished your Christmas shopping?

Tags: alexander oudin, art, beauty, burt reynolds, centerfold, creative, Crop, facebook, fb, fbcrops, fun, hack, jpgs, kim kardashian's ass, pic scatter, pics, pictures, profile

The Best Gingerbread Cookies

Posted on December 5th, 2010 by Jean

As far back as I can remember, my family has baked these Winter Gingerland Cookies. Mom found the original recipe in a newspaper during the 1960’s. The clipping is long gone, but her hand-written note remains.

I’m continuing this tradition with my daughters. They’re a great help in the kitchen, and enjoy themselves along the way. The secret is to keep it fun and lend a hand.

The kids can add the ingredients, roll the dough, cut out the cookies, and most importantly, decorate them! We buy Betty Crocker icing in tubes. The plastic, interchangeable tips are less than $3. at your local grocery store.

Press play when you’re ready to see how easy this recipe is, and rock out with Hip Hop Jingle Bells!

Here are some of my favorite photos from the day. Hot cookies cool on the stove while our kitten, Lucy, undecorates the tree.

Family enjoying cookies.

Oldest daughter draws a gingerbread man while youngest daughter continues to play with the dough.

• What traditional treat do you bake during the holidays?
• Do you have kittens in your tree?
• How do you prefer your Jingle Bells?