Karen’s Opinion

Do you remember when Meryl Streep was under the impression that apples had some sort of chemical on them that were bad for our health? She is a very famous actress so, when she got on her soapbox, the apple industry suffered. I am under the impression that the same thing has happened with the egg industry. Eggs are bad for you, they are good for you. What are we to believe?

When making any decision, whether it be about the food we eat, travel destinations and the like, it is best to do our own research. Check out the websites of informed individuals and listen to what they have to say. Hopefully, they have already researched the product and came to a conclusion that we can study before deciding what is best for ourselves.

The same holds true when investing. Many of us have little money to invest so when we do, it is wise to follow the steps of the large investors. They are advised from financial advisers who are well versed in the economics of our times. Whether you wish to invest in stocks or bonds or gold production, the advice that private and large scale institutional clients use is available to the private investor as well.

This is a sponsored post in which I was compensated to write about the subject of finances.

There are no guarantees that, just because it is your birthday, your day will be great. I guess I lucked out because, even though I had to work today, I woke up without a headache. My hubby fixed me a big breakfast which is always a great way to start the day, and, I had gifts waiting to be opened!

My husband does pay attention to what I say! I, sometimes, wonder if he does but he must have listened at least once over the past month. I opened my gift and was shocked at what was in the package. Can you guess what I received? Was it a weeks stay at the condos in Miami? Was it a necklace from Tiffany’s? No, it wasn’t a getaway or jewelry. I got a new toilet seat! Our toilet seat has looked nasty for a while and I really wanted a new one. I am so happy! It is installed and looks so good.

Both of my sisters sang the birthday song to me over the phone. That was funny. I will get them back. LOL

I will have a celebration this weekend. Our daughter is flying home tomorrow night and our son and his wife will be visiting from St. Louis. It will get noisy and I will eat too much. I cannot wait!

Hubby and I enjoyed a night out on Saturday. We had heard that the old Eagle Theater in Wabash had been newly painted, carpeted and generally refurbished. My husband has many memories of attending the old Roxy Theater where he grew up. Some of the memories include sticky floors and throwing red hots over the balcony. He was a bad boy! Sadly, the Roxy was torn down and a parking lot marks that spot. Thankfully, someone had the insight and fortitude to raise funding for the renovation of the Eagle. Many volunteers worked hard and are still working as even the kids behind the candy counter are volunteers.

We arrived at the theater and were greeted by the aroma of freshly popped popcorn. There is nothing better than movie theater popcorn! We, much to my trepidation, climbed the stairs and sat in the balcony. I told my husband he would need to behave himself, no popcorn throwing. The lights dimmed and the commercials began. Does anyone else think there are way too many commercials before the actual movie starts?

The screen, which sits above a stage, was a bit blurry and had streaky lines appearing during the beginning, making me think to myself, oh no, is this movie going to be difficult to see? Thankfully, the streaked lines only occurred during the first commercial. It actually made me feel like I was at an old movie. Perhaps that was the plan. If so, it worked.

The Dilemma was the movie for the night. I was prepared for a cheesy, slapstick comedy but hey, I was at the Eagles and that would make up for a bad movie. I was pleasantly surprised at the story line. It was great. Another couple went with us and my friend, Linda, and I laughed so hard that at one point we were snorting!

The Dilemma, in case you haven’t heard, is about two best friends who are on a mission to invent a motor for an electric car. The motor has to make the car sound and drive like a muscle car. The idea is to get people to buy electric cars and not feel like they are driving something wimpy. Lab coats and laptops complete the garage type atmosphere of the business where dreams are put into motion.

The personal lives of the two buddies is where the story gets interesting. One of the friends witnesses his friend’s wife smooching with another man. She is cheating on her husband! Vince Vaughn played Ronny, the guy with the dilemma, and Kevin James was Nick, the friend with the cheating wife. During the scene where Nick’s wife is cheating, Ronny, in an effort to spy on the scandalous scene, falls into a poisonous plant. I thought the people in the white medical uniforms might have to carry me away, I was laughing so hard. It is hard to explain how good the timing of the actors was as they bantered back and forth. At times, I had a huh? moment. I would guess that the actors, themselves, found it hard to say their lines with straight faces.

As we walked to our car, we laughed again at the antics of the characters in this movie. It was definitely not a cookie cutter movie, with a predictable story line. Have fun, go see this movie!

I think that Valentine’s Day is one of my favorite holidays. That sounds like a very odd statement since my husband and I agreed, a long time ago, not to exchange valentines gifts on Valentine’s day. My birthday is the very next day and it would just be too much celebration for this household! The reason it is a favorite for me is because of the sentiment of the day. The object of the sentiment doesn’t even have to be limited to your significant other. The projection of thoughts of love towards all the people you care about is highlighted during the day. These thoughts can be shown through a simple act of a hug or as grand as sharing hot air balloon flights. I have heard that florists are very busy around this holiday.

Do children still have a Valentine’s day party at school? Mom would send me to school with cupcakes decorated with pretty pink frosting. I guess we didn’t worry about food allergies in those days. I can remember working on my valentines, signing my name in the best penmanship I could produce. We decorated a paper bag and then taped it to our desk. On THE day, we would drop a valentine into each bag. Those little, decorated, cards were treasured. I would take them home, spread them out on my bed and sort through them. They would be considered vintage these days. LOL

Can you imagine going through a cold winter like we have had recently but not have any heat? I often think of the pioneers who had to cut wood and heat their cabins with a fire. I am so thankful that the top alternative energy companies have the resources to sell us power to fuel our homes. We have radiant heat that gives us an even temperature all over our house. I never liked the type of heat that kicked on and off. I’d be shivering all the time! Our heat doesn’t blow out of a vent. I prefer that type.

When we travel through the mountains, I think of how the pioneers had to cut through the trees to get anywhere. We have roads to take us where we want to go. I can imagine what a grouch I would be if I had to carry all my belongings in a wagon, bathe in icy cold river water and kill my food before I could cook it.

Are there things you can think of that we take for granted these days? How about air conditioning. There were times when I was growing up when we didn’t have air conditioning in our home. It was hard to get to sleep at night. Yes, we are blessed.