Gadget Magnet

Ok, so really, the proof isn’t in the pudding.  The proof is in the first t-shirt to withstand the StainGuard, a Workday, Washing, Drying and another photo…..

Anyone impressed yet?

The light is shining on it kind of weird but there are no stains there…..yet….

I’ve been wearing the Stain Guard deodorant this week.  Overall, the comparison of my normal deodorant and Stain Guard seems very equal.  It’s technically only day 4 but thus far, I’d say it’s all good. 

Now, about getting my wife to wash some of the t-shirts that I have worn to check for stains and all that.  Please note, I did say she needs to do the laundry.  She does do the laundry around here, in her own good time, so I am going to wait this one out.  However, she did send me this photo today explaining that this *might* or *possibly* be a good reason why the laundry doesn’t get done around here. 

I can’t say with all certainty whose idea it was to put the whiffle balls in the clothes basket.  She maintains that if the basket was empty, then no dirty clothes exist. 

*rolls eyes*

You all did see the photo of the dirty laundry on the floor didn’t you?  Don’t let her get away with this…….

I’m starting this challenge courtesy of Collective Bias.  When I’ve finished documenting over the next couple of  weeks, I’ll have a big Whrrl story that I’ve started but won’t publish until the end.  So, sit back and relax and watch was happens….

I did the shopping trip alone on Friday night.  Even though my wife thought she was going to follow me around and tell me how to do it, I bribed her with a pedicure and I went shopping with my 5 year old.  What woman will turn down a pedicure?  I know how to work the bribery on this woman.

Dusk is setting in and I’m going shopping…sans the woman.

I am going after a package of Hanes White T-Shirts which come with a sample of Stain Guard Deodorant.  I use Degree normally, but for two weeks, I’m giving this new stuff a try.

Once in the store, I went to the men’s department and found exactly what I was in search of…

If you look really close on the left-hand side, you can see the sample of the deodorant attached.  And, you can also see that I”m getting 6 t-shirts, not 5.

From there, here’s where my story is going to take you…

I’m starting with, a look at how I wear t-shirts.  First of all, I wear one every day.  I work in them.  They get really nasty and it makes my wife really crazy.  I also wear a white t-shirt under dress shirts no matter the season.

With that in mind, here are a few photos for perspective…

I do have to say that my wife has intervened to help with this project, I don’t have that much creativity in me.

The following photos are labeled according to my wife’s description…*rolls eyes*

My wife also mentioned that I needed to put in a disclaimer here that this is a cumulative photo of all of my t-shirts and hers.  Except, she wants to make sure you know, these are only the ones that I either work in and I get really dirty, or the ones she sleeps in and refuses to leave home wearing.  We do actually have a plethora of nice T-shirts hanging in the closet.  So, by all means, this is about 1/3 of the t-shirts we own.

The first photo here is what my t-shirt drawer looked like when I started making photos…

Please note:  That is an empty drawer.  Here’s why………

Our laundry resides in the floor, unwashed or in baskets, clean but unfolded a majority of the time *she is going to kill me*

Anyway, she was kind enough to wash up all the laundry yesterday and today AND fold it for me, all the more reason not to let her know how I’m telling you her secrets.

Here’s the whole shebang..

Please note, the shirts are stacked and my very organized wife (what you don’t think I’m going to get in more trouble than I’m already in over the dirty laundry comment do you?) put them in stacks depending on what they are worn for, where they came from and if they are going to even make it back into the work-related and/or sleep-related rotation.

So, here goes..again….

That photo is a variety of colored shirts that she sleeps in.  Her excuse is that she works from home and why bother putting on real people clothes when she can wear her pj’s all the time.  Those will return to her chest of drawers.

That’s two keepsake t-shirts that my wife has.  One is from the Disney conference that was provided by…….(hang on, had to ask) My Shimmer and various bloggers including Mickey and Mini Mouse signed it.  The other one has the ad that she used on the back of a t-shirt when we owned the daycare….those t-shirts are retired to the “special drawer”…where ever that is…

That’s my 2, yes only 2, white undershirts for wearing under dress shirts and just to be cute, there’s one of each that the boys have.  Notice we aren’t big on dress clothes with undershirts…we like our t-shirts to be the primary piece of clothing.

That is an array of t-shirts that I have ruined from working on them and she has officially declared these shirts “rags”.  And to further prove her point, she takes the scissors and immediately cuts them into pieces so I don’t wear one of the…even in an emergency.

That is an example of a work t-shirt in white that didn’t even make the “rag bag”, she tossed it in the trash all together.

Another white work shirt that hit the trash, she declared these too disgusting to even clean the toilet with.  I’ll spare you here but there were about 5 more like this thatwhich managed to go into the trash.

This group of t-shirts were moved to the bag of rags but were saved from the scissors in case of an emergency.  Most of them are gray and or white or were at least gray or white at one time.

With that, let’s get this challenge underway…

I’ve restocked with new shirts and the few I was allowed able to keep.

Stay continued for an update in a day or so, I wore one of the dress shirts today and will have baseball games to go to this week and will wear them under my good shirts.
http://bargainsproject.com/web_images/speedstick_stainguard.jpg

……..stay tuned..

Hershey’s is holding a Better Basket Blog Hop where for each blog post  Hershey’s will donate $10 to Children’s Miracle Network. All you need to do is follow these easy rules:

• Copy and paste these rules to your blog post.
• Create a blog post of giving a virtual Easter Basket to another blogger – you can give as many Virtual Baskets as you want.
• Link back to person who gave you an Easter Basket.
• Let each person you are giving a Virtual Easter Basket know you have given them a Basket.
• Leave your link at http://betterbasket.info/bloghop/ where you can also find the official rules of this #betterbasket blog hop and more information about Better Basket with Hershey’s.
• Hershey’s is donating $10 per each blog participating to the Better Basket Blog Hop to Children’s Miracle Network (up to total of $5,000 by blog posts written by April 4th, 2010).
• Please note that only one blog post by each blog url will count towards the donation.

Here’s something you can do to pay it forward – babysit for a friend who needs a break.

I am a big movie watcher.  I watch a lot of movie on my laptop or when the kids are in bed because some of the movies I watch are just not child friendly.  So, when given the chance to take a date night with my wife, that just “might” include a movie, I was excited.

Since we eat out quite often, we know where we can eat and drop half a paycheck and where we can go and be thrifty.  Since my wife still can’t chew a lot of foods, it make going cheap a lot easier.

I thought about where we would go because like I said, we eat out often.  I chose our local mom and pop restaurant.  I knew I could have anything on their menu because Jerri Ann would get a baked potato since it is basically all they have that she can tolerate right now.  I did ask her if it was ok though, I didn’t just say, “here is where we are going, hope you like it”.  My wife is not that easy to get along with.  Just kidding!

I had a catfish plate with baked beans and fries.  She had her normal, what they call a loaded baked potato and drinks.  Shazam, we were out of there under $20.  That meant I had a bit to toss out on a movie.  So, we headed to the local store, I grabbed “The Hurt Locker” and then we were on our way home.

Now, it’s your turn, see if you can pull off a cheap date….and I hope you have as much luck as I did because, this is about cheap dates, not cheap women.  Sorry, I couldn’t resist.

If you have a Blockbuster Kiosk near you, here’s a code for you to use for rental 5G13B28. And, just to make sure you have all the information about how to use it, be sure to read it below.

Code is valid thru 3/31/2010. When you rent a movie at the regular price, you’ll receive the first night’s rental on a second movie FREE. Extra night charges and taxes apply. May not be combined with any other offer. Rental terms and conditions apply. Not valid at Blockbuster store locations.

“I received a gift card from Collective Bias for participating in the Cheap Date Night promotion for Blockbuster Express”

Webcam chat at Ustream

Look for live streaming video of “The Equinox Express”

• on Monday, February 8th when it is dropped off
• on Monday, February 8th when Boy Genius arrives home and gets the tour
• on Tuesday, the 9th as we start loading our bags for travel
• on Tuesday, the 9th as we get moving down the road toward Orlando
• on Tuesday at various stops along the trip from my house to Mickey Mouse’s House on Wednesday, the 10th
• on Wednesday, the 10th as we navigate to Mickey’s House
• from Wednesday through Friday, the 10th thru the 12th as we give various bloggers a tour of The Equinox Express
• Saturday, the 13th as we make our final tour of the Mouse’s House
• Sunday, the 14th (talk about a Valentine’s Day of Fun) as we make the trek home from Mickey Mouse’s house
• Sunday, the 14th as we unload the car and prepare for its departure on Monday, the 15th
• Monday, the 15th while we await someone from the GM Family to retrieve the Equinox Express
• Monday, the 15th as well all sadly watch as the Equinox Express is returned to the hands of the GM Family

My wife has a guest post on Skimbaco Lifestyles and she needs your help.  She wrote a sweet article about me and now, you can help her win by simply commenting on the post, I Found My Reason

It’s that easy!

My wife was a school teacher and we owned a daycare at one time.  I have two boys and both of them are extremely gifted.  They learn quick and without a lot of repetitive tasks.  It just seems to be natural to them.  I’m glad, I think life is so much easier when you are able to retain information quickly and for long periods of time…sounds simple doesn’t it?

As a gadget man, I like to build and create.  My oldest son is always asking questions, always wanting to know how to make things around the house work.  And, with the information he seems to be getting at school, I know he isn’t just being sent to school for babysitting.

He is just in the first grade but he often tells me about atmosphere, planets, the sun, the moon, the weather.  He keeps me on my toes asking me various multiplication facts as well.  I do my best to explain to him how to build, create or repair various gadget’s around the house but sometimes, he is the one explaining to me. 

My son’s school is a great school.  That doesn’t mean I agree with everything that goes on, but 95% of the time, I can honestly say that my son comes home each day with a new skill, new information and knowing how to accomplish one more extraneous task. 

I don’t think we tell the teacher’s how much we appreciate them but honestly, when your child is excelling as mine is, I can only turn to the school and his teacher and say thanks. 

Thanks Mrs. L for all you do!

This post is part of the MAT@USC Hope for the holidays event. Did you have an experience or witness something in 2009 which gave you hope for the future of American education? If so, please see this post for more information on how to share it.