Sherry Tingley

2 Dozen Red Roses For Valentine’s Day

February 6, 2014 by Sherry Tingley

Valentine’s Day! You Gotta Love It!

Every year, the February 14 love fest sets off a frenzy of rose-buying that is unparalleled throughout the rest of the year. Most of the time, a rose is a rose is a rose, but on Valentine’s Day, it’s the classic way to make your sentiments known, being the international symbol of passion and love.

Men are most inclined to put out their shekels for roses, mostly red, to tell the women of their dreams that they care. Sixty-six percent of them believe that ladies prefer red roses. In fact, according to ProFlowers, 76 percent of women would make another choice. Predictably, however, they will go into ecstasies when the red roses show up. Go figure.

Regardless of this classic mismatch in the statistics, a mostly-male customer pool will order millions of roses this year, at a cost of $70 to $120 or more per two-dozen bunch. And, being men, the great majority will wait until three days before Valentine’s to put in their orders. They are the ultimate procrastinators, sellers know.

Fortunately, ProFlowers expects the last-minute rush. Its customer service people can take more than 100,000 calls per day, and in short order, more than 14 million roses, mostly in bunches of two dozen, will be on their way to the women who inspired the choice. That represents some 20 percent of Pro-Flowers’ annual business.

Although women want to be cherished every day of the year, the majority of them look forward to Valentine’s Day as the one on which declarations of love are expected and cherished. Julia Roberts, starring in the film “Valentine’s Day, has posted notice in advance that it will be a great day for herself and husband Danny Moder. “We’re just going to be making out for the full 24 hours,” she predicted.

Ironically, Ashton Kutcher, one of the stars of the TV comedy “Two And A Half Men,” who also appeared in the movie, has very dissimilar feelings about the holiday itself. “I hate Valentine’s Day,” he stated emphatically. “I think every day should be a day of romance. Then, on Valentine’s Day, you should get to tell whomever you hate that you cannot stand them. There would be one day of hating and 364 days of love.”

The most common sentiments expressed by women to men – We want you to take our breath away. It reinforces our choice of partner. We want to know we picked a guy who is proud to be ours and wants the whole world to know it. Really, it’s the ultimate bragging rite for our gender.”

Despite Kutcher’s Valentine bah-humbug, the annual rush for roses is waiting in the wings. To make the selection online, here are some sources. (These list only the roses. Each of these outlets also has many other selections to choose among.)

Proplants.com	2 Dozen	$59.97
Proflowers.com	2 Dozen	$69.96
1-800-flowers.com	2 Dozen	$84.99
Flora2000.com	2 Dozen	$99.99
FromYouFlowers	2 Dozen	$118.99
FTD.com	2 Dozen	$199.96
Teleflora.com	2 Dozen	$199.96

Another Way To Say I Love You

Don’t forget about ordering your love checks not only for Valentine’s Day, but all year round!

Saving Money On Superbowl Sunday

January 31, 2014 by Sherry Tingley

Football Stadium Food Display – Photo From Philly.com

Football Fans Unite

Face it. You’re in good company — among the tens of thousands who don’t hold tickets to Super Bowl XLVIII, the football event of the year. So while MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., is packed to the hilt with screaming fans Sunday, yelling for either the Denver Broncos or the Seattle Seahawks, you’re stuck with hosting an at-home version.

Last year, some 108 million people watched the Super Bowl in settings ranging from posh parties (entry fees ranging from $200 to $2,000 each) to home theater TV rooms or the local sports bar.

Whatever suits your fancy, if you find yourself the host and/or hostess to the gang, make it easy on yourself. Don’t let the decorations, goodies and clean-up take precedence over the game. If all you score is a colossal headache by Sunday night, you’ll have defeated the whole purpose.

Delegate

First of all, get help. Enlist other enthusiasts in your group to share in the chores. Gather at the largest available home and divide out the food. This is one of those occasions when potluck can work. If you fear too much overlap, keep a sign-up sheet so you don’t end up with twenty bags of chips and no dip. Otherwise, pre-assign items that are easy on the budget and on the preparation. Sideline fussy dishes with lots of ingredients. Buy with coupons and buy in bulk. Inexpensive snacks such as pretzels, chips and nuts help satisfy appetites before, after and even during the big meal. The idea is to enjoy the munchies while enjoying the game.

Pizza Deals

Pizza is popular and when it’s Super Bowl time, many of the well-known outlets have special deals that let you feed a crowd without breaking the bank. A few of the online deals being advertised include: Dominos: Choose any two or more two-topping medium pizzas for $5.99 each. Or eight pieces of chicken, an oven-baked dinner or stuffed cheesy bread, also at $5.99. Papa John’s, which is noting its 30th anniversary, has a large one-topping pizza for only 30 cents with the purchase of a large pizza at the regular menu price. The chain also has an online coupon, code pjmvp that allows you to order $15 or more online and get a free three-topping pizza. Pizza Hut has a deal that gives you two medium two-topping pizzas and two sides (or a third medium one-topping pizza) for just $19.99. As kickoff approaches, the deals are changing faster than a chalkboard game plan, so check with Living on the Cheap’s Dining Page before you make up your mind.

Dishwashing

Used to be paper plates, cups and other items saved money. But prices for these paperware items have soared in the past few years. Use your own dishes if you have enough to go around. Have guests bring their own, if necessary. You may gain in dish washing what you lose in savings on purchases, but refer back to suggestion No. 1 above. Share the chores.

Dollar Stores

The neighborhood dollar store might surprise you with the number of items you could pick up for decorating. A few pompoms and streamers can go a long way. Of course if you’re partial to either of the competing teams, focus on the colors that suit. That would be orange and blue for the Broncos, blue and lime green for the Seahawks.

Make It Easy

Most of all, remember rule No. 1. Make it fun and easy. Don’t tackle more than you’re game for, and keep some perspective as you cheer for your team. There will always be a Super Bowl XLVIX.

Bonus Recipe

This is one of the easiest recipes to make that people just love. It serves 6 to 8 people and is very filling. Certainly enough for a meal.

Cheesy Vegetable Chicken Soup

2 cups chopped broccoli
4 cups cubed potatoes
2 cups sliced carrots
2 cups diced celery
1 1/2 cup chopped onions
4 cups sater
6 chicken bullion cubes

Boil the above ingredients in a large covered pan for 20-30 minutes. Drain off most of the water.

3/4 c. flour
1 cube of butter
3 cups of milk
dash of white pepper
1 lb. of Velveeta cheese
3 cans cedar cheese soup
4 cooked chicken breasts – cut into small pieces

Mix everything but the chicken together in a frying pan. Stir constantly on medium heat until soup like consistency. Add chicken. Pour into vegetable mixture. Keep warm in crock pot. Enjoy your Superbowl Sunday party!

Name The Faces Of Wall Street Journal’s Facebook Image

January 4, 2014 by Sherry Tingley

Celebrities

The popular Facebook page by Wall Street Journal shows this beautiful illustration as their cover photo. With 1,837,732 likes and 56,329 people talking, Wall Street Journal excels at Social Media. The well read newspaper captures customers’ attention as well as meaningfully engaging them in conversations on Facebook.

Who Are They?

For the challenge of the day, see how many people you can identify and why you think they made it to the cover of WSJ’s Facebook page?

For a little help –

Mark Zuckerberg
Hillary Clinton
Ben S. Bernanke
Oprah Winfrey
Warren Buffet
Janet Yellen
Calvin Broadus – Snoop Dogg
Serina Williams
Marissa Mayer
Barrack Obama
Queen Elizabeth
Chris Christie

Controlling Impulse Buying

August 27, 2013 by Sherry Tingley

“Impulse decisions, especially impulse purchases have been widely discussed in psychology and economics as a phenomenon of deviation from rational behavior.” (Vohs and Faber, 2007) We all seem to be guilty of impulse purchases once in a while, but consistently doing this can put one in the proverbial dog house, especially with lovers or spouses.

A poll of 2,000 British men revealed that men apparently do more impulse buying than
A common behavior, one woman explains:

Whenever I’m feeling lonely, stressed or bored, I go to the Mall. It makes me feel
good to buy something—shoes, cashmere sweaters, cosmetics and jewelry,
sometimes even something for the house. I just can’t pass up a sale. Last year I
bought another Channel suit on sale. Even if it’s not the right size, I can have it
altered.

What harm is there in buying something to feel good? I work hard all week, and
I deserve a little glamour. Besides, I’d rather go to a store where people pay
attention to me than go home and feel ignored or lonely. So what if I have a lot of
credit card debt—doesn’t everybody? At least I have some beautiful things to
show for myself. In this world, image is everything. . .

According to finance advisor Katheryn Amenta, Impulse shopping is caused by the inability to control the emotionally motivated urge to buy things.” She recommends that you make specific short-term and long-term financial goals. “With specific goals, you will be better equipped to resist buying things that have lesser meaning in your life.”

To stop impulse buying you have to have be able to give up what you want now to have something that you want more than anything later.

Top Twenty Impulse Buys

Food
Clothes
Magazines
Bottles of wine
Books
DVDs
Shoes
Holidays
Beer
Toiletries
Home furnishings
Music
Clothes for the children
Jewellery
Accessories
Gadgets
Garden accessories
Flowers
Toys
Day trips

What are your most common impulse buys and how do you resist them?

Are Banking Jobs Worth Dying For?

August 26, 2013 by Sherry Tingley

Bank Of America Employee Found Dead

Entrance into the competitive financial job market is sometimes accomplished through internships. Recently Moritz Erhardt, an intern for Bank of America in their City of London offices was found dead in his apartment.

Erhardt was employed in the firm’s investment-bank division, in a 7 week internship contract. Erhardt’s salary during this time was forty-two hundred dollars a month.

Friends of Erhnardt’s reported that he been forced to work through the night eight times in a two week period in an effort to secure long term work with the firm. It seems that Erhardt was personally driven to be the best in many areas of his life, a habit that started in elementary school. He was always in over-drive to perform well.

He had recently worked through several nights and had not slept for 72 hours. The intern had an epileptic condition which also added to the tragedy.

So there are several motivating factors that push people to work beyond their limits. A strong desire to accomplish something for themselves or for their companies can push people past their reasonable points. Another desire is to advance their careers to assure high salaries in the finance industry.

What ever the reasons people have for over working, it is the employers who need to be aware of how intensely their employees are driven and try to put limits in place to help them stay reasonable. One might wonder if a workplace culture that acknowledged workers’ needs as much as employers’ bottom lines might have helped prevent the tragedy of Erhardt’s death.

Bank of America is looking into the causes of his death as well as looking at what they can do to change employee working conditions. Nothing is as important as assuring good working conditions and reasonable work expectations in the corporate world. This tragedy is heart breaking for many and can serve as a stepping stone to change policies to prevent this from happening again.

We want to offer condolences to the family in this sad time of loss.

Preventing Tragedies Like This

Be sure to take care of yourself if you know you are putting in too many hours. Keep life activities in balance by saving time for enjoying life with family and friends. Get required sleep and eat a healthy diet. Without those basics, life can get scarey and have bad outcomes.

Upset Business man Sitting on Briefcase