so you wannabee a Domestik Goddess?

It just feels wrong to criticize, when someone does something nice. In this case, the folks at Best Buy sent along a little REDI mp3 player for my Aged Mother to take with her when she went into the hospital, back at the end of June.

Great idea, eh?

Well, it was… sort of…

My mother (yes, same one; I’ve just got the one) always said, “If you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all” — and, fortunately, I do have some nice things to say about the player. But it’s not all good, so I’ve been really stalling here, not much wanting to write about it…

Okay, here goes:

Basically, it’s a $40 1GB mp3 player, pre-loaded with music so you can start using it right away — or as soon as you get another battery to replace the highly questionable one that comes in the package. When you do want to change the selection, it comes with the USB cable to glom right on to your computer and go to it. And the screen isn’t too hard to read, as these tiny LED screens go. Oh, and there’s an FM tuner, too — essential for we who are avid fans of public radio.

And I’m sure, as a $40 mp3 player goes, it’s about as good as one can expect to get. In fact, the sound is surprisingly clear and true.

The problem is in getting the damn (sorry, Mum!) thing to work.
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This clever kit puts all the survival gear you need for camping trips or — more hazardous yet, dorm life! — into a space that’s only 8 1/2 by 3 1/2 inches. Better yet, that package is a shatter-resistant, leakproof, 32-ounce water bottle (with the lid on a loop so you don’t go losing it in the wilderness.

The water bottle comes stuffed with a nice selection of emergency essentials:

• Whistle
• Flashlight with AAA batteries
• Emergency blanket
• Rain poncho
• Multi-purpose knife with blade, scissors, nail file, tweezers and toothpick
• Waterproof matches
• Nylon-pouch first-aid kit with bandages
• Sting relief pad, antiseptic towelettes and zip-lock bag
• 3″ carabiner

Not bad at all — safety and convenience, for under twenty bucks!
A nifty gift idea from EddieBauer.com.

Check it out: this is my new black-and-white houndstooth check hobo bag, no label — $6.99 only! My frugal heart leapt for joy when I spotted this.

The bag has one big exterior pocket with a snap, and inside is a silky black lining with a good-sized zipper pocket and another smaller open pocket that’s the perfect size for keys or an mp3 player or such. The main part of the bag zippers up, too, so nothing falls out when I drop it oh-so-casually onto the nearest flat surface, which I am sadly prone to do — but then, aren’t we all?

So yes, I went purse-shopping in the hospital gift shop while my mother was having a pre-op poking and prodding… how bad is that?

But after all, it’s not like I abandoned her in her hour of need, and it’s not like I didn’t urgently need a new bag (because I did), and it’s not like I spent a whole lot of money either… did I mention, $6.99?!