Great Southern Coins

From stamps to dolls, from property to coins, from firearms to fine art, the world is filled with a variety of collections. Collectors attend conventions, flea markets, and estate sales in pursuit of their specialty item, and they search through online classifieds for items that will make their collections complete.

Collections are INVESTMENTS and collectors pride themselves in their knowledge of their specific field of expertise. They also become adept at locating collections and they spend a good deal of time researching, buying, trading, and showcasing their collections. Collecting itself can sometimes become a full-time job. 

Even the Internet becomes a goldmine filled with the collector's dream.  Besides real estate and fine art, probably one of the most profitable investments, and one that is not too expensive to begin, is a coin collection. Begin one for a child and the investment could potentially pay for college.

A great place to start (coin collectors and anyone interested in precious metals investments probably already know about this company) is with Great Southern Coin, one of the leading Internet coin dealers. Because of the sheer volume of coins they offer customers, their selection of both certified and uncertified coins appear all across the Internet. You can always find them in eBay auctions.

Just getting started? Not sure of the value of coins? To help you, Great Southern Coins lists current values for silver, palladium, platinum, and gold in their "Current Spot Prices" section.

Finding good customer service support in an Internet environment is often impossible, but Great Southern Coins' customer service is "honest, reliable, and second to none" (from their web site). Great Southern Coins caters not only to coin collectors, but also to bullion traders. As a matter of fact, they consider themselves the "one stop location for all your precious metal needs." 

Great Southern Coins buys large quantities of precious metals, coins, and bullion, and therefore is in a unique position to pass along great discounts for all of its customers. While you search online for your next best deal, GSC's buyers are traveling the country in search of investment opportunities for you, their potential client.

You never have to leave your home to find the best deals on coins, bullion, platinum bars, certified gold, or silver maples (and more). Great Southern Coins makes buying easy. They offer VISA, MasterCard, American Express, Discover, and PayPal. Click the link above to begin your own collection.

Concerned about buying from them over the Internet? Don't be. They are a BBB (Better Business Bureau) accredited business with an A+ rating.

The Day of the Gum Ball

A long, long, loooong time ago my mother and her best friend took four of their children to watch a Disney movie. I was one of those children. I don't remember which Disney movie we watched, but I remember part of the day vividly.

It was beautiful. The sun was shining. And I was happy. 

We had been walking down the street after Bonnie's mom, Theresa (you now know where I got my name), and my mom had stopped at a gum ball machine. What a treat! We NEVER got gum balls! This day truly was magical! All four of us plopped the gum into our mouths and continued on.

And then one of those defining moments occurred – you know, the ones Dr. Phil talks about? – "defining moments" that impact you so profoundly, they stay in your long-term memory forever and affect everything you do from that point on? From the "Day of the Gum Ball" moment on, I would question EVERYTHING, because that moment shaped the rest of my life. And it took place right there on that Chicago street when I was only five years old.

Seconds after we had put the gum into our mouths, Bonnie pulled from her mouth a perfectly shaped miniature toy dog. I was amazed – and perplexed.

"How did you do that?" I asked Bonnie, who was a year younger than I.

"I don't know. It just happened."

She must have used her teeth, I reasoned, so I used my teeth and tried to carve a little dog toy. I pulled the gum from my mouth and hoped to marvel at my creation.

Sadly it was just a glob of gum. 

But I didn't give up. Over and over and over and over again, block after block after block, I tried to sculpt a toy dog with my gum, biting around what I hoped would be its head and rolling between my tongue what should have looked like a tail.

Every few steps, I pulled the gum from my mouth, hoping to marvel at my own exquisite creation. Finally, after being scolded, "KEEP THAT GUM IN YOUR MOUTH!" I had to accept the sad truth – Bonnie was extraordinarily talented, and the only thing I could use my teeth for was chewing.

Later (I don't remember how many years passed), my "aha" moment arrived when I noticed tiny little toys in a gum ball machine. Wasted hours spent trying to create a gummy masterpiece – wasted hours wishing I could be as creative as my 4-year-old friend, Bonnie, because there it sat, taunting me from the inside of a gum ball machine – a perfectly shaped miniature toy dog!

To this day, when I see the wheels in a child's head spinning, I know that child is asking, "How did you do that?" as the child tries to reason how things work in this world – all thanks to "The Day of the Gum Ball." 

Video Chat with a Celebrity!

Thirty years ago, if a fan wanted to reach a celebrity, she had to write a letter. Fifteen years ago, fans could reach their idols through email. Today fans can reach celebrities through video!

How? By signing up with Celebstir! Celebstir is a new social networking site that gives its members the opportunity to interact with celebrities through live video chats, but it also gives members a chance to become celebrities themselves. According to the Celebstir site, "Celebstir is a website that gives its members a platform for promoting themselves." 

Make professional connections with rising talent by joining Celebstir, where you can follow celebrities, contact celebrities, or even become a celebrity yourself and interact with your peers. Are you a musician, an athlete, an actor, or an artist? By showcasing your talents and abilities, you gain not only exposure, but also the ability to influence others. Why not give Celebstir an opportunity to promote YOU! 

Join Celebstir now if you want to interact with Olympic Gold medalist, Conor Dwyer, on October 10, 2012. If you miss that date, you'll have other opportunities to interact with celebrities from a variety of genres – with your own web cam – whether you're a fan of sports, screen, stage, music, or art. 

Want to keep up with Celebstir? Like them on FaceBook!

How I Cut a Cold Down to 3 Days!

As an asthmatic, I am particularly sensitive to colds. Once they run from my head to my chest, I'm in trouble. When I discovered a method that helped prevent my colds from becoming asthma attacks, I wanted to share that information with other asthmatics, so I wrote an exhaustive article that explained How to Prevent Colds from Becoming Asthma Attacks (click the link to read).

Recently, however, when I came down with yet another cold, rather than bring out my usual arsenal of weaponry (as discussed in the article), I decided to experiment. And the experiment worked!

In the article linked above I list two items that I used only occasionally to help prevent my colds from worsening. This time I wondered how using only those two items might work.

Every morning and every night, when I discovered I had a cold, I used the Neti Pot and took a Mucinex tablet. I find the Neti Pot disgusting to use, by the way, but by following this method, my cold, which generally lasts a week to ten days and often attacks my lungs, disappeared by the third day – and it never made its way into my lungs! Had I found the cure for the common cold?

(This ad shows what a Neti Pot looks like):

Of course not, but I did discover a way to lessen the number of days I suffered from a cold. And I successfully prevented the cold from damaging my lungs. Maybe it will help you too.

Use of the Neti Pot requires you to mix lukewarm water with a saline solution and fill the pot to a certain point (Neti Pot instructions will clarify). You must clear your nose before using it, then tilt your head over the sink while you gently pour the mixture into one of your nostrils. Switch nostrils. You might have to interrupt the procedure to clear your nose. At least three times, I had to set the pot down and grab some tissues, but by the third day, my cold was gone. I continued to use the Neti Pot for an additional three days though (just in case the cold returned). 

(Mucinex is for adults and children): 

Yes, I rested, and I drank plenty of fluids. But I was determined to follow this practice, reasoning that by clearing the nose of germs, I was creating an inhospitable environment for germ reproduction. Perhaps I was right in my thinking, because after only 3 days, I was cold-free.

The Neti Pot, combined with Mucinex, cut my cold down to only 3 days. Try it and see if it works for you.

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A Wedding Pictorial

Marriage is the institution that brings two people together to form their own family. Rich in tradition, marriages have been celebrated throughout the ages, and while trends change over the years, some things remain the same, as you will see with the following pictorial brought to you by  Moissanite. Enjoy!

Presented By Moissanite.com visit moissanite.com

So Bronze Professional Sunless Tanning

Most people agree that a little color helps a person look healthier, but according to the FDA, the sun damages the skin and tanning beds expose the skin to harmful UV rays. We all know that, right? But did you ever think about what getting a tan means? According to FDA scientist Sharon Miller, "A tan is the skin's reaction to exposure to UV rays."

So what? A lot of people, even after hearing about the dangers of tanning beds, will continue to use them. While tanning beds work faster than lying in the sun, getting a tan the natural way takes time, and most of us don't have time to just lie in the sun. 

But a lot of people I know don't want that leathery look either – or skin cancer.

I don't use tanning beds and you won't find me lying in the sun trying to get a tan – for lots of reasons. First of all, I don't tan well. Secondly, all I get is freckles. Thirdly, I don't want to get wrinkles when I'm 80. Fourth, I've already had breast cancer – I'm not going to risk skin cancer too, especially when skin cancer runs in my family.

Getting a tan artificially appears to be the safest way to tan. If you visit tanning salons, please consider another option. Let me tell you about a fortuitous even that occurred a couple of weekends ago.

My daughter, Brittney, handed me a couple of tubes of So Bronze Professional Sunless Tanning. One was for the face; the other for the body. She gave them to me because she already had a couple of tubes and somebody from her boutique had given them to her with an explanation that the reason she was getting rid of them was because she didn't like the smell. Believe me when I say that not all tanning creams are the same; some create an orange cast, some streak, and some just don't work.

I happen to like the smell of So Bronze Professional Sunless Tanning, and I'm not allergic to it! YAY! But what's more, I love the way So Bronze works. Within a couple of hours after putting it on, I had a tan! I looked healthier than I did before I applied it, and I felt better about the way I looked – WITHOUT having to lie in a tanning bed!

So Bronze Professional Sunless Tanning is expensive, but each application is supposed to last for several days. What's really nice about this tanning cream is that it DOESN'T STREAK. The cream goes on smoothly and is – hands down – the best tanning cream I've ever used.

All I can say is that though So Bronze Professional Sunless Tanning is expensive, I WILL figure out a way to afford it once these tubes run out.

To read more about the harmful effects of UV rays, please click HERE!

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MasterWriter – an Unbiased Review

What is a writer's best friend? A thesaurus? A dictionary? How about writing books or screenwriting magazines?

Want to know my nonhuman best friends? Ideas! Research! Words! A sense of wonder! And MasterWriter! Perhaps you and I share the same friends. But if MasterWriter is unfamiliar to you, I invite you to read on.

Maybe this scenario sounds familiar. You gather all of the basic ingredients (ideas, notes, etc.) for your book, blog, screenplay, or article, and you sit down at your computer or laptop. Your hands hover above your keyboard and you type. Everything runs smoothly until, much to your dismay, one necessary word – the only word that suffices in describing exactly what you have to say, seemingly disappears from your vocabulary. Poof! Gone!

You can almost see it. You can almost taste it. But you can't get to it because that perfect word flits around the synapses in your brain like an elusive butterfly. Finally the word lands on the tip of your tongue – so close and yet so far away. 

Yes, friends, you suffer from "tip of my tongue" syndrome, and the malady is frustrating. In desperation, as you near your assignment's due date, you find you sometimes have to let your work go "as is," knowing you could have explained yourself so much better.

Like many writers annoyed by "tip of my tongue" syndrome, I hoped somebody would design a program that was intuitive enough to locate precisely the word I needed simply by plugging in that insanely "close" word that was not the word I wanted to use. If only the correct word would magically spring onto the keyboard, I would applaud myself for finding the exact word I needed amidst the 1,013,913* other words in the English language. Oh, what a relief it would be to rid from my tongue the weight of holding that one word I was thinking but couldn't quite capture. 

And then MasterWriter appeared and I couldn't wait to explore it. The English language is filled with so many "close" words that trying to match a specific idea to the word that defines our thoughts demands precision. MasterWriter contains that precise word. It includes a thesaurus, a dictionary, and lots of exciting surprises for writers!

Bob Zemeckis, an Oscar winning writer, director, and producer, (Back to the Future series, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, Forrest Gump) says, "MasterWriter is an absolute necessity for today's creative writer." William Peter Blatty (The Exorcist) and Andrew Davis (That '70s Show) agree.

MasterWriter claims that MasterWriter 2.0 is, "The most powerful suite of writing tools ever assembled in one program." Their claim is spot on. If you take a look at their Short Demo, you will agree. I'm not going to waste any more of your time by advocating the benefits of this program. You can see for yourself the advantages of MasterWriter 2.0 by watching the Short Demo (click the link).

MasterWriter even offers a program for songwriters and poets, though its basic program, MasterWriter 2.0, offers so much it just might provide exactly what the lyrical crowd needs. However, it might be worth exploring for all the poets and songwriters out there.

So go ahead – explore – and be amazed!

* From The Global Language Monitor

Thinking of Joining the Disney Club? DON'T!

Several years ago I decided to join the Disney Club. I wanted to get all of the classics. Period. I did not want to get every single movie that Disney ever put out from Disney's beginning until the day I died. 

Don't get me wrong – I love Disney movies. Always have. HOWEVER, trying to quit the Disney Club is like trying to get out of the Hotel California (Eagles song). Disney allows you to join its club, but you can never leave.

Disney politely tells you that if you want to cancel your membership, after you have fulfilled all of its requirements, all you have to do is call 1-800-362-4587.

Good luck with that. You will be sent on an endless trip through the telephone circuitry that always leads you back to the same taped recording you received when you first made your call. You think maybe you missed something, so you hang up and try your call again. No luck the second time either.

Then you find a different phone number, so you call that one (1-800-362-4527). But guess what? You get the same recording. You can never talk to a real person at the Disney Club, and nobody there will ever cancel your membership. They threaten to cancel it if you return too many DVDs, but they never actually follow through with canceling your membership. I know. I have returned LOTS of DVDs, and I still receive those envelopes every time I miss the email that asked me if I wanted it.

When I return too many in a row, Disney sends me notices reminding me that all I have to do is respond to their emails, but I get over 300 emails a day – the likelihood of losing a Disney reminder is astronomically high, especially when I have something to do other than sit at my computer and open over 300 emails a day.

So, if you are considering joining the Disney Club, make sure your commitment is for life. Don't forget to respond to Disney's emails, and make sure you have enough money in your checking account to cover the cost of the DVD you didn't want, because if you become overdrawn, your bank may charge you $25 every single time you get a new Disney movie, and believe me, $25 can break you when you have less than what Disney charges for a movie.

Remedy for me? I'll just keep sending those movies back. Maybe eventually, when Disney gets tired of paying for all the postage, the Disney Club will cancel my membership (PLEASE)!

Best bet for you? Purchase your movies through Walmart or Target. They're sometimes cheaper anyway.

Baby Bullet for Baby's Nutrition

When my kids were young, I was probably one of the most "green" parent on the planet, though going green never entered my mind because nobody knew the terminology, "going green," back in the 60s, 70s, and 80s. 

Like so many other parents raising kids in those years, I used cloth diapers, cloth wash rags, and a baby grinder to prepare meals for my baby. I would never have spent a lot of money on ANYTHING during those years, but I might have invested in something that didn't exist back then, the Baby Bullet.

My youngest daughter, Brittney, was given the Baby Bullet a a gift from her mother-in-law. The $100 price tag seemed a little outrageous, but when you factor in the cost of baby food for the time it takes baby to eat baby food, the Baby Bullet more than pays for itself. According to the Baby Bullet web site, what you get is a week's worth of food for less than $3.00.

As you can see by the above ad, Kohl's is selling the Baby Bullet online for only $59.99 (as of today, May 2, 2012).

My daughter purchases organic fruits and vegetables the whole family can eat, and for the baby boils the veggies until they are soft, places those veggies or fruits in the Baby Bullet, and pours them into Baby Bullet containers. What comes out is exactly the consistency of any store-bought baby food. 

Cleaning the Baby Bullet is easy, too, and knowing you're feeding your baby only the healthiest foods is a one of the most rewarding features of the Baby Bullet. The Baby Bullet comes with containers to hold food and and you can also purchase an all-in-one steamer, defroster, and sterilizer.

Instead of standing in the baby aisle trying to figure out what to buy for your baby's meals, go to the organic food section in the grocery store where you do all your other shopping, and pick organic fruits and vegetables for your family. Set some aside for your baby and use the Baby Bullet to give your new family member a great start in nutrition.

If you would like to read more from this author, check out all of the other blogs and articles on the right hand side of this blog under the donate button.

Infinity Pro Conair Spin Air Brush Review

The Infinity Pro Conair 2 in. (50.8 mm) Spin Air Brush seemed promising – but unbelievable. I had been the victim of numerous hair-stuck-in-brush episodes, so I couldn't imagine that this spin air brush could possibly work.

And for so many reasons:

1) The texture of my hair changed dramatically after chemo destroyed it. After my hair grew back in, it felt – and looked – like straw. It was also erratically wavy, curly, or kinky.

2) I have NO dexterity when it comes to manipulating my fingers around ANY type of hair styling implement.

3) I don't believe in hype.

4) The Infinity Pro Conair Spin Air Brush is expensive.

The $60 price was enough to detract me from even trying it, but because I was so uncomfortable with the way my hair looked, I searched online for reviews from other people. Due to so many glowing reviews, I decided that if the price went down – significantly – I would try it.

Then one day several months later, I saw the Infinity Infinity Pro Conair Spin Air Brush at Walgreens for $34! I brought it home and tried it.

And IT WORKED! It worked so well, in fact, that my previously kinky, all-over-the-place hair looked smooth and silky. It worked so well, my hair GLIDED through the brush. It worked so well, I didn't need to be dexterous – the Infinity Pro Conair Spin Air Brush did all the work FOR me.

I know the highest number of stars reviewers give a product is 5, but if I could give this one a 10, I would. Its ease of use and its results are as amazing as the makers of the Infinity Pro Conair Spin Air Brush purport them to be.

If you have been considering purchasing the Infinity Pro Conair Spin Air Brush or any product, read as many reviews as you can to help you determine whether or not to buy the product. The Infinity Pro Conair Spin Air Brush is one purchase I'm glad I made. 


If you have VERY long hair, the makers of the Infinity Pro Conair Spin Air Brush recommend drying your hair first with another hair dryer.

Review of Tyson Buffalo Style Seasoned Wings, Meijer's Wings, and Walmart's Wings

If anything could turn me into a vegetarian, it's Tyson Buffalo Style Seasoned Wings. I have always been a lover of BBQ wings and mildly hot wings, but I will no longer purchase Tyson Buffalo Style Seasoned Wings or Tyson's BBQ wings or Meijer's wings or Walmart's wings. I'll have to get my wing fix at Beef 'O' Brady's or Buffalo Wild Wings, where the wings are lean, meaty, and tasty.

Somewhere along the line Tyson, Meijer, Walmart, and some other manufacturers of bagged wings have decided that fat chickens are what consumers want to eat. Tyson's, Meijer's, and Walmart's bagged chicken comes with a layer of fat between the skin and the meat that measures about half an inch thick. GAG!

Tyson, Meijer, and Walmart, listen up: IT'S NOT ABOUT THE FAT! Fattening a chicken does nothing to increase the protein level in a chicken. Nothing is more disgusting than to bite into a wing and find your teeth sinking into several layers of fat. Wings are supposed to be lean! They used to taste good!

Tyson, Meijer, Walmart – you and other companies that fatten your chickens have made those chickens disgusting. You are also contributing to America's problem with weight. Until you raise normal healthy chickens with no hormone injections and no fattening techniques, you've lost at least one customer – me.

While I await your decision to make leaner chickens, if anybody out there knows a vegetarian replacement for BBQ or hot chicken wings, please let me know.

Pinterest, Interest, and Curiosity

It's all Sarah's fault. My granddaughter moved in with me and introduced me to her favorite new site, Pinterest, and because of Sarah, I HAD to join.

When she's not taking care of Ayla (my great granddaugher) or entertaining Ayla, Sarah spends most of her computer time on Pinterest. So I joined Pinterest because she wouldn't stop talking about it. Just kidding. I joined it mostly for craft ideas, but then I decided that what I could also use it for was to post links to my blogs and articles.

Pinterest reminds me of a Vision Board, but instead of being displayed on your home wall, it appears in cyberspace for everybody to see. I've only just begun, but I'm already looking forward to posting more items. I used to find things online that I just HAD to save or bookmark, and then, after I had all my bookmarks firmly in place, my computer decided to visit the land of the dead one day – I lost all my bookmarks.

But now, when I find something appealing, I can post it on my Pinterest page. What's fascinating to me about Pinterest is that it appeals to my voyeuristic curiosities about what interests other people and what is important to other people. It allows me to step inside their space and take a look around. Pinterest can be inspiring, comedic, thought provoking, and FUN.

If you would to see my early-stage Pinterest board, please click HERE! Also, invite me to visit yours. (If you've read any of my previous blogs about fashion, you'll know why the "My Style" board is empty ;)

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Scentsy is Scentsational!

When I started getting barraged with requests to "TRY SCENTSY!" and, "HOST A SCENTSY PARTY!" and "OMG! You should try this stuff!" I balked. NOTHING smells THAT good. NOTHING!

And then I forgot about it.

Until last week. My granddaughter and my great granddaughter moved in with me temporarily and when I walked into my granddaughter's room, I was transported to a time when I was in the warm and loving home of my long departed Auntie Alice and Auntie Margaret. The fragrance was so immediately detectible, but not so overwhelming it would kick my asthma into gear, that I never wanted to leave my granddaughter's room.

"What is that?" I asked.

She casually responded, "Scentsy." And I went crazy on her. "OMG! I've never smelled anything THAT good – EVER! It reminds me of time spent with my great aunts when I was a child. It smells like their apartment! This is sensational!"

The fragrance was called, Autumn Sunset, and it was made by Scentsy. I now know why everyone is so taken with that product. All the other scents are amazing too.

Way to go, Scentsy! Way to go!

If you would like to read other blogs or articles by this author, I invite you to click on any of the following links.

All Craft Connection

Your Weird Dreams 
Your Blog Connection 
Help For Single Parents
My Heart Blogs To You 

Writing Creatively
Paranormal Minds 
Product Favorites 
Theresa Wiza's Blog
My Associated Content Articles 
My Xomba Articles 

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