Secrets No One Ever Told You

Snoety’s in revamp mode …

Harriett — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 20:26:24 +0000

We’re revamping!

If you’re not on our subscription list and want to be notified when we’re up and moving again, please “subscribe for free,” and we’ll let you know.

Thanks for your patience,

Harriett

We’re revamping …

Harriett — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 16:51:37 +0000

If you’re wondering why we haven’t updated recently, it’s because we’re revamping … back soon with new stuff.

Any thoughts? Let us know! And stay tuned.

Harriett

A wristband for your healthy iPhone-er!

Harriett — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 18:08:18 +0000

Here’s a cool present for the iPhone-toting loved ones in your life— your very own 24/7 health monitor (as a wristband).

Stick with us, this really is worth knowing about …

Jawbone brings us something new — an Up wristband that will do everything from monitor daily movement to sleeping habits. It works a lot like Nike’s app on the iPhone, tracking how many steps you walk, distance you travel, calories burned, and intensity level. It’s even set up to alert you to get up and move around if you’ve been inactive for too long — great for people with back and other problems from sitting in front of the computer without a break!

During the day, Up also allows you to track what you eat using a food diary. Take photos of your food and provide commentary on how it makes you feel, and Up will determine which foods make you feel the best.

When it’s time for sleep, simply put Up in sleep mode and have it track how long you slept, the stages of your sleep and wake you up when it thinks the time is best by using the vibrator in the wristband.

You can even shower with it, because it’s waterproof – designed to live with you 24/7.

For a full description, check out the Geek.com article, “Jawbone’s Up is a smart wristband that aims to keep you healthy,” here or buy your own now from their website.

Priced at $100 with a free iPhone app, what could be better (well, okay, but you know what we mean) …

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Geek.com, “Jawbone’s Up is a smart wristband that aims to keep you healthy,” Blake Ellison, November 4, 2011

Bizarre beauty tips that supposedly work

Harriett — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 16:43:16 +0000

You’ve heard some of them before— mayo for your hair, olive oil for your skin— but here are other bizarre beauty tips that we’re told actually work (mayo and olive oil included!).

Remember those early days of concocting homemade beauty recipes and testing them on your friends? Who knew if they worked, but according to the Real Beauty article, “33 Weird and Whacky Beauty Facts,” there are a few that actually live up to the legend (with a few extras you may have never heard).

To soften the skin:
Bathe in milk and honey, olive oil or red wine
If filling up a bathtub is too much, soak just the hands/feet in any of these. You can also just throw a few cups of any one of these ingredients in your bath water.

To avoid frizzy hair:
Dry hair with cotton such as in your boxer shorts (towel fibers can increase the frizzies)
Saturate your hair in mayonnaise (1/4 cup) with a few teaspoons of natural eucalyptus tree oil in the shower after shampooing.

To fight wrinkles:
Eat silicone rich foods such as lettuce and spinach.

For healthy nails:
Also, eat silicone rich foods such as lettuce and spinach.
Rub baking soda on a lemon wedge and rub on nails for a white look.

To combat bloating:
Make a celery seed tea (1 teaspoon of crushed seeds, steeped for 10-20 minutes).

To beat bad breathe:
Chew on a fresh sprig of parsley. (Maybe that’s why it’s often used as a garnish for food?)

For puffy eyes:
Place chilled, already-steeped green tea or chamomile bags over eyes.

To fix oily hair:
Rinse with half lemon juice, half black tea … or …
Boil mint and add the minty water to regular shampoo (2-to-1 ratio with more shampoo).

For smooth hair texture:
Make a sea-salt spritz (water, a few teaspoons of sea salt and a dash of olive oil in a spray bottle) … or …
Rinse hair with club soda … or …
Sleep with silk pillowcase.

For more body and to repair hair:
Boil 3/4 cup of beer until it reduces to 1/4 cup, cool and add cup of shampoo to mixture.

For shiny hair (pick one or all):
Olive oil with shampoo
Cranberry juice rinse (esp for redheads)
Brush hair every night

For longer lashes:
Dab flax seed oil on lash line with a Q-tip.

To remove make-up:
Use olive oil.

To condition hair:
Condition with moisturizing lotion … and/or …
Use mashed avocados

To de-stress:
Bathe with apple cider vinegar.

To cure smelly feet:
Soak feet in black tea bath.

For a brighter complexion:
Rub lemon on your face.

To fight oily skin:
Put egg whites over a washed face.

For an exfoliating face mask:
Oatmeal with milk, leave on for 10 minutes.

For more weird beauty tips and explanations of the above, read the entire article here.

Qualifier: We haven’t tried all of these; so, if you do, let us know how they work …

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“33 Weird and Whacky Beauty Facts,” Leah Melby, Real Beauty

Want an easy explanation on what’s going on with Greece?

Harriett — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 15:32:41 +0000

Here it is explained so we can all understand it … and I quote from the article written by Kevin Drum for motherjones.com:

A CONVERSATION ABOUT GREECE

By Kevin Drum

| Tue Nov. 1, 2011 5:49 PM PDT

Are the Greeks crazy?

No, they’re just at the end of their tether. Europe is asking them to adopt more austerity than they’re willing to bear.

OK, but they’re spending too much money. Surely they know they have to cut back?

Sure, but the deals on offer are pretty unattractive. Europe wants to forgive half of Greece’s debt and put them on a brutal austerity plan. The problem is that this is unrealistic. Greece would be broke even if all its debt were forgiven, and if their economy tanks they’ll be even broker.

But that’s the prospect they’re being offered: a little bit of debt forgiveness and a lot of austerity.

Well, them’s the breaks.

But it puts Greece into a death spiral. They can’t pay their debts, so they cut back, which hurts their economy, which makes them even broker, so they cut back some more, rinse and repeat. There’s virtually no hope that they’ll recover anytime in the near future. It’s just endless pain. What they need is total debt forgiveness and lots of aid going forward.

That doesn’t sound like a very attractive option for the rest of Europe.

No, it’s not.

So maybe they should just let Greece default and wash their hands of them.

Here’s the thing, though: Greek debt is largely held by German banks that made the loans. [See update below.] If Greece has been irresponsible, so were the German banks that happily loaned out the money. So if Greece defaults, the banks go kablooey. But they’re too big to fail, which means the German government would be forced to bail them out. And guess where the bailout money comes from? Tax dollars.

This means that German taxpayers have a bleak choice. They can shovel lots of money to Greece to keep them from defaulting, or they can refuse, and then shovel lots of money into German banks to keep them from collapsing. Either way, German taxpayers are going to foot the bill. They just haven’t quite accepted this in their gut yet, and it’s hard to blame them. They’re pretty badly screwed no matter what.

Hmmm. Given that choice, they might decide they’d rather give their money to German banks than to Greek civil servants. What happens then?

Greece defaults. And that almost certainly means that Greece exits the euro.

Why?

It’s the growth thing again. If Greece defaults, nobody will loan them any money. That means huge cutbacks, which means the economy will tank, which means even more cutbacks, etc. The traditional way out of this spiral is a massive devaluation of your currency. But Greece doesn’t have a currency. It has the euro.

So if they want their economy to grow again, they have to (a) default, (b) exit the euro and re-adopt the drachma, and (c) devalue the drachma. This will cause massive amounts of pain, but it will also make Greek exports super cheap, which will eventually revive their economy.

So why not just let that happen?

It’s just too catastrophic to consider. German banks, of course, would collapse and have to be bailed out. Ditto for banks in other countries that have lots of exposure to Greek debt. But that’s not the worst of it. If Greece exits the euro, it will become terrifyingly obvious that other weak countries might exit too. Portugal, Spain, and Italy are the obvious candidates. Investors, spooked at the thought of their money being stuck in a country that might exit the euro and devalue all its bank deposits, would start huge runs on banks in those countries. The ECB would have to intervene and provide liquidity without limit. It would be a disaster.

So exiting the euro can’t be allowed?

Right.

But if there’s no exit, there’s no devaluation, and Greece is pretty much screwed forever.

Right.

So who wins?

It depends on who blinks. Exiting the euro would be no picnic for Greece. But they could decide it’s better than endless indenture, and threaten exit in order to get a better deal from the Germans. Then the Germans have to decide whether to call their bluff.

Wow.

Exactly. Wow. Everyone knows that somebody’s going to lose a huge pile of money over this. What’s really happening right now is a very high-stakes negotiation to figure out just how the losses are going to be parceled out. Stay tuned.

UPDATE: It’s actually a little unclear just which country has the biggest exposure to Greek debt. Maybe Germany, maybe France, maybe Switzerland. See here, here, and here. And the ECB owns a lot of Greek debt these days too. But the general principle doesn’t change much. One way or another, Europe’s big countries have to decide whether to bail out Greece or whether to let them default and then bail out their own banking systems.

http://motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2011/11/conversation-about-greece

Dictionaries and Encyclopedias for your phone

Harriett — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 17:40:36 +0000

A quick trip to Wikipedia may be a good enough reference from your mobile phone, but these handy apps give you more accurate, better-designed and non-data consuming alternatives — from encyclopedias to atlas’ to cooking …

Call us old fashioned, but we can’t live without our hardback printed dictionary. Obviously, for our on-the-fly needs, carrying a heavy book in our bags isn’t really an option, so we turn to our trusty iPhones who don’t have the storage capacity to fit the Encyclopedia Britannica yet (although no doubt iCloud will make this possible one day).

Here are a few apps to get us all by for the time being. They’re courtesy of: The New York Times‘ Bob Tedeschi in “Reference Apps for the Budding Know-it-All.” As he says, “Why would anyone need an app when nearly every bit of reference material is already available from a mobile browser? Two reasons: Money and beauty,” he says.

“If you tend to rely heavily on reference materials for work or school, and you frequently drift outside of free Wi-Fi zones, you can consume a fair amount of data with your browser. And with unlimited data plans quickly disappearing, mobile data charges can be costly. Meanwhile, few mobile Web sites are as user friendly as an app, even when they’re from the same publisher.”

To avoid the eye-sore of reference sites on your browser and save the money you’d spend on data browsing, check out these apps:

1. Britannica Concise Encyclopedia 2011: $20 on Android and Apple.

2. Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary: $25 on Android and Apple

3. The World by National Geographic: $4 for the iPad

4. Merriam-Webster Dictionary: Free on Android and Apple

5. WikiMobile Encyclopedia: Free on Android

6. Wikipedia Mobile: Free on Apple

7. Google Earth: Free on Android and Apple.

8. World Atlas by National Geographic: $2 on iPhone

9. DK Publishing’s Quick Cook: $6 on iPad

Now, you never have to say you can’t find something!

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“Reference Apps for the Budding Know-it-All,” Bob Tedeschi, The New York Times, Aug 31 2011

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/01/technology/personaltech/reference-apps-for-the-budding-know-it-all.html

Jobseekers: 7 Ways to Sabotage Yourself

Harriett — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 17:09:17 +0000

It’s hard enough to find a job these days, so be wary of seven ways you may be making it harder …

Everyone seems to know someone in search of a job, so do your friend/family member/former co-worker a favor and pass along these helpful tips from “7 Ways Job-Seekers Sabotage Themselves,” by Kiplinger.com’s Liz Ryan.

1. Don’t talk too much: Try not to play the role of eager beaver during a job interview as this may deter the interviewer. The article suggests you “Don’t start gushing about your professional experience right away. Take a deep breath, listen carefully to what is being asked of you and only answer those questions. Remember not to give one-word responses, but don’ t tell your life story, either.”

2. Know your market value: Don’t short-change yourself or set your sites too high. “Visit sites like Salary.com, Payscale.com and Glassdoor.com to find out how much your skills are worth. That way, when a hiring manager asks, ‘What are you looking to earn?’, you’ll be able to respond with a solid number.”

3. Utilize your network in your search: Frequently, a new position is waiting for us on the other side of the fence. Don’t neglect to inform those in your network of your job search as they may know of good opportunities for you.

4. Be prepared: This is Interview 101, but before you go into the office, be sure you Google the company for their history, competitors and state of the industry. According to the article you should ” have at least five to ten questions prepared that speak to the employer’s situation in the marketplace and the impact of the role you’re interviewing for on that equation.” Preparation shows you not only care about the company, but also puts you above those who slacked on the prep.

5. Keep your focus: The interviewing process can be mentally challenging, but keep your focus and don’t ramble. “Dragging on about one topic is not the best way to present yourself.”

6. Be accountable: Don’t try to mask any flaws on your resume. “Not being able to clearly explain something, such as why you’ve been unemployed for the past year, is going to raise a red flag.” Make sure you’re prepared to provide answers to any flaws or holes in your resume, and don’t ”apologize for your career twists and turns, but rather integrate them into your story.”

7. Don’t accept an offer immediately: Give yourself time to understand the offer fully, including pay and health benefits and make sure you get it in writing. “You can’t negotiate the job terms if you aren’t aware of what’s exactly on the table.”

To read more, check out the full article here.

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“7 Ways Job-Seekers Sabotage Themselves,” Liz Ryan, Kiplinger.com, October 1, 2011

You can upgrade your iPhone, iPad, iTouch software for free!

Harriett — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 21:23:59 +0000

The iPhone 4S release may have disappointed some, but Apple is giving current iPhone, iPad and iTouch users something to hold them over until the iPhone 5 release— that’s the new iOS5 software — for free.

As of Wednesday, Oct 12 at 1pm, all iPhone, iPad and iTouch users can upgrade their phone software to the new iOS5. Why should you upgrade? Well, for one (and the most obvious reason), it gives your phone new capabilities for free. That means the operating system that will be on the new iPhone 4S can run on your old iPhone 4.

Check out the seven new features we’re most excited about below, and then read on to find out how to upgrade your operating system and start taking advantage of all 200 new features today!

1. Notification Center:

We always find it annoying when we’re checking Maps directions a text message alert pops up, forcing us to either redirect to the message with View or get the box out of our way with Close. Now, with iOS5, notifications pop up at the top of your screen without interruption and disappear quickly. You can get alerts on calendar events, reminders, mail, text messages, Facebook posts, and more, all in real-time at the top of your screen or by swiping down from the top of any screen.

2. iMessage:

If you already have an unlimited text plan, this may not excite you as much, but for those who don’t, now you can send unlimited messages to anyone else who also owns an iPhone, iPad or iPod touch. Think Blackberry’s BBM service. The best part? You can actually see when people read your messages and are typing back to you. Good unless you’re trying to avoid someone…

3. Newsstand:

Buy the latest issues of magazines and newspapers straight from your device as soon as they become available with Newsstand.

4. Reminders:

Manage your to-do lists easily by syncing them with iCloud, iCal and Outlook as well as have the capability of location-based reminders that alert you when you leave or arrive at a location. That means you can have your “Grocery” list reminder pop up on your phone as soon as you enter the grocery store.

5. Camera improvements:

Access the camera by double-clicking the home button (even while your phone is asleep) and shooting with the Volume Up button, including crop and rotate options, red eye removal and one-tap photo enhancement, plus more.

6. Wi-Fi Sync:

Sync your device to your computer wirelessly over a Wi-Fi connection. This means you can update your iTunes on your phone without having to plug it into your computer.

7. iCloud:

Store books, documents, music, video and back up all the content on your phone in the cloud to have everything available across all your devices.

For a list of all the updates, visit Apple’s site here.

Ready to update your phone to the new iOS5? Have a number of hours to let your phone process the entire update? Follow the simple steps below and be patient. The new features are worth the wait!

As for the iPhone 4S, it’s available for pre-order, and our go-to Tech columnists Pogue and Mossberg are giving it (and especially the voice control Siri addition) a thumbs up. Remember KITT the talking car from Knight Rider? Imagine this, only with the capability to tell you what good restaurants are around you, set your alarm, write your emails and texts, send them, schedule appointments, call people and listen to music all by voice command technology that, to Pogue at least, is close to “magic.”

Read Pogue’s review of the iPhone 4S in The New York Times.

Watch The Wall Street Journal’s Mossberg test Siri on the iPhone 4S.

Cancer Symptoms You’re Most Likely to Ignore

Harriett — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 21:07:52 +0000

Everyone has a friend or family member with Cancer. And we all read about those cancers that we may have some familiarity with, so may feel we know what to look for. However, according to “Cancer Symptoms You Are Most Likely to Ignore” by Melanie Haiken from Caring.com and Yahoo! Health, you shouldn’t rely on tests alone, and there are some little-known signs of cancer you should note to ensure early detection and treatment.

Below is a very simple version of cancer symptoms indicated in the article; however, you should check out the more in-depth information through the links noted at the end of this post.

Breast Cancer:
Red, sore or swollen breasts and cellulite-like dimpled skin on the breasts
Nipple changes (flattened, inverted or sideways)
Itchy, scaly, crusty skin on nipple

Ovarian Cancer:
Bloating or abdominal weight gain not associated with period
Feeling full and unable to eat
Pelvic pain

Endometrial or Uterine Cancer:
Unusually heavy or painful periods
Spotting between periods

Lung Cancer:
Wheezing and shortness of breath
“Clubbing” of fingernails (fingertip enlargement with nails that curve over tip)

Thyroid Cancer:
Breathing problems
Hoarseness

Esophageal/Throat Cancer:
Difficulty swallowing or hoarseness
Heartburn or low-level pain in chest after eating

Leukemia:
Frequent fevers or infections
Achyness
Flu-like symptoms for an extended period of time
Weakness and fatigue

Colorectal Cancer:
Stomach cramps/upset stomach
Unexplained weight loss
Bowel problems such as constipation, diarrhea and changes in stool or frequency of stools

Pancreatic Cancer:
Fatty stools that are pale and smelly

Skin Cancer:
Changes in fingernails

Liver Cancer:
Pale or white nails

Stomach Cancer:
Abdominal pain that mimics gas or heartburn (usually goes away with antacids)

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“Cancer Symptoms You Are Most Likely to Ignore,” by Melanie Haiken, Caring.com via Yahoo! Health, October 7, 2011

http://health.yahoo.net/articles/cancer/symptoms-you-are-most-likely-ignore

Want to know more about the inner workings of the art world?

Harriett — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 20:56:27 +0000

This is cool. Sotheby’s is giving us an insider view of the art world with a series of documentaries you can watch online.

Ever wanted to know the inner workings of the art world beyond the gallery events and openings you attend? Check out the online documentary series Sotheby’s created to discover the art world from an insider’s perspective.

There are four films:

1) The Artist – which takes you through the creative process with four major “intriguing and innovative” artists: Jeff Koons, Ronald Ventura, Cai Guo-Qiang, and Amy Granat.

2) The Collectors – focuses on the passions that motivate great collectors around the world to accumulate valuable cultural treasures, through their own words.

3) The Rostrum - where you will “uncover what drives the world’s most talented auctioneers …”

4) The House — learn what makes an auction “so intense and irresistible …”

This is a wonderful way for the web to be used. … hope other auction houses, museums and other learning institutions start offering more “insider” content in this way.

Check out the entire series here.

Harriett@snoety.com