No matter where I’ve lived, I’ve always made it a priority to have a couple of bird feeders around.  Of course, being a woman, I also have to make sure that they’re attractive, which is where this particularly fine Lantern Bird Feeder.  It looks like an old converted lantern, but its not.  That’s a good thing, too, since you can never be sure what types of metal are used in old lanterns.  It’s much better to stick with something specifically manufactured for birds.

Aside from that, the Lantern-Shaped Bird Feeder is rust-proof and vented to help keep seeds dry.  The birds in your neighborhood will love you, and your neighbors won’t mind looking at it, either.

Lantern Bird Feeder
Price: $24.99

Just yesterday, I could have used this machine to save at least an hour.  I spent way too long peeling potatoes for potato salad, and my fingers have the cuts to prove it.  I have a similar peeling device for apples, but it doesn’t work on potatoes.  I guess the spring isn’t tight enough to get through the tougher potato skin.

Of course, that makes me think that I could find a way to tighten the spring on my apple peeler and get the same results.  Maybe I don’t need a potato peeler after all…

Potato Peeler
Peel potatoes or apples quickly and easily with our Potato Peeler.

For years, I suffered from a serious problem - all my pepper grinders only ground pepper.  I think back to those days as a clueless kid, and I’m glad I’ve gotten wiser over the years.  Today, I opt for a sleek and sophisticated stainless steel Chef’n Dual Salt & Pepper Grinder.  It matches my kitchen, and it has the ability to grind both my salt and my pepper.  I no longer have to inundate my meals with piles of regular iodized table salt.  Today, I can grind sea salt and fine peppercorns to my heart’s content.

Yes, I tend to get a little crazy when it comes to pepper grinders.  I don’t care, though.  Everyone else is free to think I’m crazy; I’ll still have my Chef’n Dual Salt & Pepper Grinder.

Chef’n Dual Salt & Pepper Grinder
One-Handed Pepper Grinder and Salt Dispenser / Stainless Steel Design

If I were to buy a dog today, it would be a toss-up between a wiener dog and a Saint Bernard.  I realize there’s a massive difference there - it’s not like trying to decide between a Shih Tzu and a Lhasa Apso - but I love them both.  Of course, it might not be a good idea to have both, as I could see the Saint Bernard repeatedly crushing the poor wiener dog.

Perhaps I could just get the Saint Bernard and then get my wiener dog fix with this cute Plaid Wiener Dog Bag.   At $46.99, it costs less than a round of shots (whether you’re talking about the wiener dog or the Saint Bernard).  Even better, the bag won’t poop on the floor when it’s too cold or wet to go outside.

I am sick to death of seeing awesome lamps and home decor products that no halfway normal person could ever afford - and that no decent person should even buy (seriously, doesn’t ANYONE really need a $2000 lamp when there are children and animals starving every say?).

This Metis Modern Floor Lamp is a great piece that comes with almost no guilt at all, pricing out at a very reasonable $99. I’m pretty sure I’ve seen lamps in Wal-Mart for almost that much, so the Metis Lamp is actually quite a deal if you’re in the market for a modern lamp.

Metis Modern Floor Lamp
Price: $99.99
Contemporize your home decor with this handsome Metis lamp.  This modern floor lamp will accent any room in your home.  Superior light features three pedants mounted to two upright support poles.

I’ve always dreamt of being one of those quaint 1950s women who has time to do things like peel vegetables and make fresh juice, but it never seems to work out that way here in the year 2008.  I guess I should probably shift my fantasy to something more realistic like marrying a rich man who can get us hired help (kidding!).

Anyway, there’s no time like the present to start fulfilling unfulfilled dreams.  This retro-looking Metrokane 3510 Mighty OJ Juicer might just help me live out my wildest 50s housewife fantasies - and enjoy fresh, healthy juice at the same time.  Sweet!

Metrokane 3510 Mighty OJ Citrus Juicer
Mechanical citrus juicer / Squeezes fruit up to 600 pounds of pressure / Cobalt blue with chrome top / Classic retro 50’s design

It’s funny.  Whenever I run and swim, I lose weight and firm up like you wouldn’t believe.  It’s incredibly simple, it works, and yet somehow, I still find myself buying crazy exercise DVDs instead of running and swimming.   The”On the Ball” Abs Workout DVD is the latest in my long line of experiments, but I’m actually really happy with this one.

Why, you ask?  Because it actually gave me something to do with the freaky ball that’s been occupying a corner of my office for the last 3 years.  For 3 years, that thing has stared at me from the corner, daring me to try it (and probably kill myself on it…I tell you, my ball is evil).  Thanks to On the Ball: Abs Workout, I’ve figured out how to use my balance ball and not kill myself.  I’d say this one actually earned my $20.

Abs Workout DVD
Price: $20.0
Abs Workout DVD - total running time: approximately 32 minutes.

As someone who spends a lot of time around pools and beaches, I’m constantly on the lookout for cute swimsuits, cover-ups, and board shorts.  I found these Puerto Rica Hurley Boardshorts today and I think they’d look awesome with a solid-colored bikini matched to one of the accent colors in the shorts.  Of course, the only solid-colored swimsuits I own are brown and black…I guess that means more shopping for me!

Puerto Rica Hurley Boardshort
Price: $38.0
Puerto Rica Hurley Boardshort. 100% polyester. 3in inseam. Light weight super-suede (wtf is super-suede??) drawstring boardshort Colored eyelets at front tie. Color and foil-striped Hurley logo printed at side leg.  H icon patch at front pocket flap.

I always tell myself that I’m going to do the right thing when it comes to recycling and green habits, but I rarely do.  I started composting once about a year ago, with a giant ugly compost bin in the backyard.  Unfortunately, that lasted about a week.  What can I say, the winters are cold and the summers are wet.  Who’s going to trudge outside to compost when there’s a perfectly good garbage disposal inside?

When I came across these cute compost crocks today,  I got that same old feeling - the one I get right before I start something new.  When I saw that they came in cobalt blue, I was sold.  These Kitchen Compost Crocks will be mine.

Kitchen Compost Crocks
Collecting kitchen scraps for composting shouldn’t detract from your kitchen decor. These sleek, ceramic compost crocks are attractive enough to keep on the kitchen counter.

When it comes to meat, a good sauce can help people overlook a lot of problems.  Did you singe the edges of the steak?  Just cover it with some sauce.   Over salt the chicken?  Rinse it off and add sauce.  Drop it on the floor?  Call it breading and add sauce.

This Robert Rothschild “King of the Grill” Sauce Set comes with Smoky Sweet Chipotle Sauce, Asian Sesame Sauce, Regular Smoky Sweet Sauce, and Apricot Ginger Sauce.  At $30 for 4, that’s actually cheaper than some of the bizarre gourmet sauces in the local grocery store.

Robert Rothschild “King of the Grill” Sauce Set
Show them why you’re the king of the grill! This set of four sauces lets you grill up steaks, burgers and chicken with flavors guaranteed to make your mouth water. From sweet and savory to spicy and exotic, these sauces are the grillmaster’s best companions.