Extreme Couponing

So far I have not been involved in extreme couponing.  I have tried to learn how to save enough money to be able to get things free, or close to free, but since I have some major limitations to being able to get out and shop when and where I want to, it hasn't worked for me--so far.  However, realizing that it has been a year now since I got a small bundle of toothpastes for free and still have several of them left--and realizing that means I have not bought and paid for toothpaste in well over a year--I am getting more serious about learning just how to do this, and especially, how to adapt it to work for me (as well as other shoppers dealing with disabilities.)

To get started, I have revived my Squidoo lens-- Couponing--Going To Extremes just now by adding some very new information.  I added the RSS feeds for at least 4 excellent blogs about extreme couponing as well as a link to the Krazy Coupon Lady's page for beginners.  You will just have to go visit my lens to find that page.  But in the meantime, maybe you can find something interesting and helpful in this guide.

Zukes Mini Naturals Dog Treats

Ever since Jonah's come to live with me he's always got yummy treats waiting for him.  His favorites are the treats I use when I want to train Jonah to do something new or to change his not-so-good behavior into good behavior.  You know...minding his manners.  So today I want to talk to you about these really good treats.
They are called Zukes Mini Naturals and they are so good.  I've only gotten him the roasted chicken flavor so far but we really like them.  They are easy for him to chew with his few good teeth.  They make him feel like that big cartoon goofball dog Scooby Do because just like Scooby will do anything for a Scooby Snack, Jonah will do just about anything for a Zukes treat.
They are easy for her to carry just a needed amount in my pocket so I don't have to take a bag or box of treats outside with us when we go for walks.  I also don't have to keep them refrigerated like I would have to if they were homemade chicken treats.  Oh I've made those homemade chicken treats for Jonah before.  They are good too.  Nothing beats homemade, right?  Except those have to be kept refrigerated.  Zukes can stay on the shelf in the resealable zipper bag.  Even though they are small treats, about the size of an average pencil eraser on the end of a pencil, they can be cut in half to make the treats last longer if needed.
You might be able to get Zukes at your neighborhood pet store or grooming shop.  But it might be even easier for you to get them online.  Your dogs will love them too.


 

All About Genealogy

I've created a couple new Squidoo Lenses on the topic of genealogy.  I would like to share both of them here with you. 

The first one is about my personal journey into my family genealogy following my Kelly lineage.  If you think you might have connections to my Kelly lines, please let me know.  I've gotten closer to the members of my Kelly lines and trying to know who they were, what their lives were like, etc.  This website is a brief historical account of my specific Kelly line.  You can find that webpage by clicking this link.

The second page is a tutorial for anyone just starting out in studying their family tree.  This one has step-by-step instructions as well as other good tutorial information.  The page is Digging Up The Roots of Your Family Tree.

Along the right side of this blog you can find a listing of the major surnames I am researching in my family history.  If you have any connections, just leave a comment for me to contact you.  In the meantime, enjoy digging up your roots.

Jonah's Been a Busy Boy

Jonah wanted his own blog.  He thought since he has a Squidoo page he should have a blog too.  He also wanted a Twitter account.  So that's what we've been doing.  Getting all that set up. 

Jonah is on Twitter @JonahShihTsu

Jonah is on Squidoo with his own Doggie Shop atSquidoo.

His new blog is at The World As Jonah Sees It.

I hope you'll take some time to check it out.  He would really appreciate it too.  And if you are looking for any kinds of supplies for small dogs, you can find it at Jonah's Doggie Shop.  All proceeds go to helping take care of Jonah.

Someone Else Using My Name

Today I found out that there is another Capirani out there.  Now knowing exactly HOW I have come to use this name makes me very curious about how there can be someone else using the same name.  Those who know me personally know what my name means but no one outside of that personal group would have any idea.  So it bothers me somewhat.  I'm not sure how many of you ever Google your own names just to see what you find.  I've done that over many years using both my real name as well as my "business" name which is Capirani.  I've never found anyone using Capirani over the years other than myself.  However, today now I have found at least two or three others with this as their username.  One is on YouTube.  I DO have an account on YouTube but it is not with that name.  So if you see anything posted on YouTube using Capirani, know that it is NOT ME.  I use a totally different username on YouTube.

As of right now, the only places that I am using the name Capirani is here on my blogs and on Squidoo.  If any of you ever has any questions about finding my name on some other account, please be sure to ask me directly and I will tell you if it is me or someone else.

What bothers me most about this is that having been involved in the past with a romance scammer and then having spent 2 years volunteering with online support groups for survivors of romance scams, it makes me wonder if I am once again being targeted in some way.  I hate the feelings of paranoia that romance scammers create in the people they try to manipulate.  I am not going to let this get to me, however.  Just know, if you see the Capirani name anywhere other than my blogs or my Squidoo lenses, and at Twitter, check back here to see if I have added anything new using the name.  If you happen to see anything posted anywhere online or otherwise using this name, check with me.  I know the reasons behind the name.  If this is an imposter out there attempting to steal my identity somehow, they will NOT know why I use this name.

Thanks.

Squidoo, Photography, Graphic Design

The past few weeks I've been very busy and enjoying most of it.  I've spent a lot of time working on creating graphic designs as well as working on my photography.  I've also been getting more and more involved in working on my Squidoo lenses which is another creative outlet for me.  It allows me to pick a topic and not only write about it, but it's more than just writing.  Yes there are modules that include advertising which will hopefully in the long run earn me some extra income.  But in the arranging of the modules and the types of modules you put on your lens along with the writing itself is also creative. This is my Squidoo profile which lists all of my current Squidoo lenses I've made.  Making these lenses can be so much fun.  It usually takes me just a couple hours to make one lens.  As long as the first complete draft looks good to me and there are no empty modules, I will usually click the "Publish" button.  I know that updating the lens regularly is something that search engines look for so I purposely don't worry so much about it being perfect on the first go round.  This leaves some room for adding modules, moving modules around if some of them would work better in a different arrangement, writing more, and even adding photographs of my own.  I enjoy trying to make a finished layout that looks colorful and appealing so that the reader does not get bored with the content.  As of today, unless I decide to create a new one later tonight, I have 27 completed lenses.   I never really know from one day to the next if I will create a new one or maybe two that day.  On days I am not making new lenses, I am usually spending some time updating some of the ones that need a little work, or a change here or there.  Otherwise I spend a lot of time working on the photography and the graphic design. 

Graphic design is something I got very interested in about twelve years ago when I first started making my own webpages.  Back then we all called them "homepages" and it seemed like it was the big fad of the decade for awhile.  But it was one thing to find graphics online to use on your homepage.  It was something altogether different to be the one who created those graphics to be put on your homepage.  I got really interested in learning how to use photos for backgrounds as well as dividers on the page.  But even more than that, I wanted to learn how to make the pretty graphic designs you could find in so many places online.  I knew there were places that sold designs and I thought it would be something maybe I could learn how to do.  But then I lost my computer and my internet for a few years.  When I finally got back online I started gradually working on this goal and now I've been spending a lot of time with it.  It's something important to me and I don't want to find myself a few years from now with regrets that I didn't at least try.  So that's why I spend so much time working on all of this. 

You can find my photography blog here. and from there it will take you to a second blog that I ended up starting because the first one is filling up so quickly.  On the second blog you will find at least one tab of graphic designs I have made from scratch.  The difference between those and all the others is that the others have all been made using actual photos, mostly bad photos.  I've stopped rejecting blurry photos and bad shots in favor of seeing if they will turn into interesting graphic designs.  Once I am done doing that, then they end up in the recycle bin.  But in this second blog, I've been using the graphics program to design my own artwork without any base other than what I come up with using the program.  No photos, no clipart.  It's almost like painting, yet totally different.  But when I finish a design, I feel like it was my creation.  The program is just an extension of me in much the same way that a paint brush and tube of paint is.  It's just a tool I use.  It feels like playtime for me.  Not work.  I am sure others think I am just playing.  If I succeed in any of this, maybe I will be taken more seriously.  Maybe not.  What's important here is that I am enjoying all of this and I am trying.