My Favorite Christmas Gift

Today I received my last Christmas present. Truthfully, I wasn't expecting this gift, which is part of what made it extra special. The best part of the gift was that the person who gave it to me had clearly put some effort into thinking about what I would like.

He remembered how much I was inspired last year by a certain story, wrote about it four times and said repeatedly that it gave me courage to quit listening to the negative voices inside my own head telling me I couldn't do things. He also saw my world rocked just a couple of months later and how I let the weight of the world be put on my shoulders and put my own dreams, hopes, and desires aside. He listened to me sob on more than one occasion when I completely broke down. He never judged me. He just kept being my friend, even when I'm not sure I deserved it.

What was this gift? It was the new CD by Susan Boyle, "I Dreamed A Dream." Honestly, I don't remember the last time I bought a CD and more than that, I don't remember the last time I sat down and listened to one from beginning to end, like I did tonight, and simply loved each and every song.

Okay, I'll grant you that not one of the songs was an original. They were all covers. Lots of artists do covers of famous songs, but they don't all hit each of them well. Susan Boyle hit every note in every song with as close to precision as I could tell.

You can listen to samples of each track on the album here. My favorite is "Who I Was Born to Be."

To be sure, 2010 is off to a great start and I'm back on track to be who I was born to be. And for those times I forget, I'll just toss in this CD and be reminded. Now I'm going to go upload it to my iPod, if I can figure out how.

What's Cooking at Little Merry Sunshine?

One of my favorite pastimes is cooking. I love trying new recipes and seeing what works and what doesn't. I enjoy learning new things in the kitchen.

I have to be honest, it's not clear where this love of cooking comes from. I recall that my mom was a pretty good cook when we were kids, but it was never something she truly loved, so she didn't spend time trying new things like I do. My dad's idea of cooking is opening up a can, tossing a frozen dinner in the microwave, or if he's being fancy, cracking the lid on the jar of Prego.

Wait, I do know where my love of cooking came from. Like so much else in my life, it came from Watervale. The summer after my sophomore year at Lake Forest College, I spent the summer working at Watervale. I worked in the kitchen, which didn't thrill me at the time because I had wanted to be a waitress (that's where the real money was and wait staff spent their days at the beach while I spent most of mine in the kitchen). On a daily basis, I made all the bread, all the salads, and all the salad dressings from scratch. I also made Creme Brulee every week, which may explain my snobbery about it now. While I didn't really appreciate it then, the culinary skills I learned that summer have really served me ever since.

Because I love to cook, I thought I'd start a new feature on Little Merry Sunshine called "What's Cooking at Little Merry Sunshine?" featuring some of the meals I've cooked or creations I've baked recently. If things turn out, I'll even share the recipes.

This week, I have been busy in the kitchen. I made Chicken Pot Pie, Spaghetti and Beef Stew, all from scratch.

Chicken Pot Pie
3 cups mixed frozen vegetables
2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cooked & cut-up
2 cans Cream of Chicken soup
1 cup Bisquick mix
1/2 cup milk
1 egg

1. Pre-heat oven to 400.
2. Mix first 3 ingredients in a greased glass pie plate.
3. In a separate bowl, mix last 3 ingredients together. Pour over chicken mixture in pie plate.
4. Bake about 30 minutes.

All together this took about 35 minutes to make including cooking time. I served it with a salad. It easily would have fed a family a four. Mom and I had tons of leftovers. I think we got 3 meals for two out of it. This wasn't the best Chicken Pot Pie I've ever had because it was a bit bland, but it was quick and easy and hit the spot on a freezing cold January night.

The beef stew and spaghetti were outstanding as well. I'll share those recipes later.

Finally, I can't finish today's blog post without wishing a very happy birthday to a dear friend of mine. Words can't describe how much I treasure our friendship.

Arlington Heights Residents: The Village Needs Your Help

Do you live in the Village of Arlington Heights? If so, the Village needs your help.

From the Village of Arlington Heights website:

The Village is currently in the 5th year of the 2005-2009 Consolidated Plan and is seeking input on the development of the 2010-2014 Consolidated Plan. As part of this process, the Village is seeking public input to determine the Village’s current community needs.

The Consolidated Plan is a collaborative process whereby a community establishes a unified vision for community development actions. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development requires that entitlement jurisdictions that receive Federal Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds look at the community as a whole, so each community can develop a vision that addresses issues such as affordable housing, adequate infrastructure, fair housing, civic design, the environment, and economic growth. The goals of the Consolidated Plan are to provide decent housing, a suitable living environment, and expanded economic opportunities to benefit low and moderate-income residents.

The Consolidated Plan is a comprehensive 5-year planning document that identifies the overall housing and community development needs of the Village, outlines available programs and resources, and establishes a strategy for prioritizing and addressing these needs.

The deadline for having your input heard is February 15th, so pass this along to your friends and family and take 2 minutes to fill out your survey now.

Click here to take the survey.

Six Months Later

Six months ago today Nana died.

I honestly don't even recognize my life these last six months. In addition to the loss of Nana, a couple of friendships I believed were indestructible have died too. And Nana's sister, my Great Aunt Dixie died right after Christmas.

It's been a sad six months and I still cry more than I want to. The good news is that at least I can control it better now. I don't spontaneously burst into tears very often, although it happened in public just last week.

The last six months haven't been all sad though. There's been a good bit of happiness too. Because Aunt Dixie died, Mom and I went back to Batesville, Mississippi, for what will probably be the last time in both of our lives. Mom and I visited Nana's grave, shared a sliver of the last bit of fruitcake Nana ever made with her, and left a picture of Nana, Mom, Dave, and me on her grave. I got to stand there, take a deep breath and just say good-bye, like I couldn't do in July.

The highlight of that trip for me though was reuniting with my cousin Robbie. We used to be incredibly tight - she was like an older sister to me, but we had a falling out 14 years ago and hadn't spoken since. The truth is that I missed her greatly and had thought a number of times over the years that I wanted to reach out and extend an olive branch, but I never did. I was still hurt. It turns out she was still hurt too and it felt really good when we finally sat down and worked it all out while we were in Batesville.

I'm so glad Robbie and I didn't turn the page on another decade without speaking. Too much time had passed as it was and we both missed out on many things in each others lives and times when we could have used the other. I can't say our relationship is back to the way it was - 14 years don't get forgotten overnight and it hasn't even been a couple of weeks - but we're on our way.

Nana always taught me that family matters more than anything. She was right, and I know she smiled as she looked down from Heaven and saw Robbie and me making up. Come to think of it, maybe Aunt Dixie had something to do with it too. Maybe after all these years, she gave us that one final gift.

The Healing Sounds of Music

When I was about 6, my mom enrolled me in piano lessons. At the time, I hated them. Mostly because I didn't like practicing. But with practice, I became okay (not great, but okay) and I stopped disliking my lessons. I think I took piano lessons until the end of 8th grade. I also sang in the church choir from 3rd grade through the end of 8th grade. I enjoyed that a lot. Finally, I took up playing the flute in 5th grade and continued until mid-way through sophomore year of high school. I enjoyed that a lot too.

Looking back, I think my enjoyment of choir and playing the flute came in part from the fact that I had a music foundation because of playing the piano. I knew how to read music - once you know all the notes, they are the same across all instruments. I understood what being "in tune" meant. I understood harmony and melody. I could keep time. The only thing I had to master was singing or actually playing the flute because I knew the theory.

Musicians have always fascinated me. I have a great deal of respect for people who have the discipline I lacked and have fully developed their musical talents. In fact, I melt for a man who plays the guitar and will sing to me. Humming works too.

Since our earliest ages, we respond to music. Most of us drifted off to sleep as babies to the soothing sounds of our parents' songs. It didn't matter if they were good or could even carry a tune. We learned our ABC's thanks to the Alphabet Song. We learned to spell thanks to music - B-I-N-G-O anyone? And where would we be without School House Rock, Sesame Street, or Mr. Rodgers? Today's kids know Barney and the Teletubbies. Yes, music was at the core of our early education and most of us not only look back fondly on these lessons, but still have the tunes stuck in our brains.

Not only is music educational, it's also therapeutic. According to the American Music Therapy Association, music therapy can promote wellness, manage stress, alleviate pain, express feelings, enhance memory, improve communication, and promote physical rehabilitation.

Without question, music is fundamental.

The Music Room in Palatine is helping promote wellness and development by refurbishing and donating instruments for the developmentally disabled clients of Clearbrook in Arlington Heights. These instruments will help with improving behavior, socialization, and reducing aggression.

So if you've got some instruments in your closet gathering dust from another lifetime, give them new life by donating them to The Music Room. Your gift may just open new doors for people with few doors open to them and change their lives.

 

Social Responsibility Matters

I try to be socially responsible and recycle paper, plastics, aluminum, glass; use green products; purchase products with the least packaging; etc. and I try to do business with companies who also socially responsible. I'm really proud to be affiliated with Mary Kay because of the social responsibility programs we have had in place for more than 30 years (refillable compacts, being one of the first companies to stop testing on animals, the Mary Kay Foundation that funds research into cancers that affect women and working to break the cycle of domestic violence, etc.). But I'm not perfect. I make mistakes. Companies make mistakes. But this story about H&M and Walmart takes the cake.

I first read about this story this morning on Blogher. Personally, I've never shopped at H&M, although a number of my girlfriends do. It wasn't that I really had anything against them, but I couldn't ever find anything that was my style. But after learning they're purposely destroying and discarding perfectly wearable clothing that hasn't sold rather than donating it, I definitely won't be shopping there. When we have as many people in our country (and elsewhere in the world) who don't have enough warm clothes, this is appalling. I honestly wish it was one of those urban legends that Snopes debunks, but it's not. It's true and it's happening in our big cities. And Walmart does it too (but I don't know anyone who thought Walmart was socially responsible).

Oh, H&M says it will stop destroying unsold clothes, but is that really good enough? Wasn't there someone in their company who could have known this practice would be discovered and would garner them all sorts of bad press?

Destroyed H&M Clothing. From the New York Times

A Clothing Clearance Where More Than Just the Prices Have Been Slashed
by Jim Dwyer, New York Times, January 5, 2010

In the bitter cold on Monday night, a man and woman picked apart a pyramid of clear trash bags, the discards of the HM clothing store that reigns in blazing plate-glass glory on 34th Street, just east of Sixth Avenue in Manhattan.

At the back entrance on 35th Street, awaiting trash haulers, were bags of garments that appear to have never been worn. And to make sure that they never would be worn or sold, someone had slashed most of them with box cutters or razors, a familiar sight outside H & M’s back door. The man and woman were there to salvage what had not been destroyed.

He worked quickly, never uttering a word. A bag was opened and eyed, and if it held something of promise, was tossed at the feet of the woman. She said her name was Pepa.

Were the clothes usually cut up before they were thrown out?

“A veces,” she said in Spanish. Sometimes.

She packed up a few items that had escaped the blade — a bright green T-shirt that said “Summer of Surf,” and a dark-blue hoodie in size 12, with a Divided label. The rest was returned to the pyramid.

It is winter. A third of the city is poor. And unworn clothing is being destroyed nightly.

A few doors down on 35th Street, hundreds of garments tagged for sale in Wal-Mart — hoodies and T-shirts and pants — were discovered in trash bags the week before Christmas, apparently dumped by a contractor for Wal-Mart that has space on the block.

Each piece of clothing had holes punched through it by a machine.

They were found by Cynthia Magnus, who attends classes at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York on Fifth Avenue and noticed the piles of discarded clothing as she walked to the subway station in Herald Square. She was aghast at the waste, and dragged some of the bags home to Brooklyn, hoping that someone would be willing to take on the job of patching the clothes and making them wearable.

A Wal-Mart spokeswoman, Melissa Hill, said the company normally donates all its unworn goods to charities, and would have to investigate why the items found on 35th Street were discarded.

During her walks down 35th Street, Ms. Magnus said, it is more common to find destroyed clothing in the H & M trash. On Dec. 7, during an early cold snap, she said, she saw about 20 bags filled with H & M clothing that had been cut up.

“Gloves with the fingers cut off,” Ms. Magnus said, reciting the inventory of ruined items. “Warm socks. Cute patent leather Mary Jane school shoes, maybe for fourth graders, with the instep cut up with a scissor. Men’s jackets, slashed across the body and the arms. The puffy fiber fill was coming out in big white cotton balls.” The jackets were tagged $59, $79 and $129.

This week, a manager in the H & M store on 34th Street said inquiries about its disposal practices had to be made to its United States headquarters. However, various officials did not respond to 10 inquiries made Tuesday by phone and e-mail.

Directly around the corner from H & M is a big collection point for New York Cares, which conducts an annual coat drive.

“We’d be glad to take unworn coats, and companies often send them to us,” said Colleen Farrell, a spokeswoman for New York Cares.

More than coats were tossed out. “The H & M thing was just ridiculous, not only clothing, but bags and bags of sturdy plastic hangers,” Ms. Magnus said. “I took a dozen of them. A girl can never have enough hangers.”

H & M, which is based in Sweden, has an executive in charge of corporate responsibility who leads the company’s sustainability efforts. On its Web site, H&M reports that to save paper, it has shrunk its shipping labels.

“How about all the solid waste generated by throwing away usable garments and plastic hangers?” Ms. Magnus asked in a letter to the executive, Ingrid Schullstrom. She volunteered to help H & M connect with a charity or agency in New York that could put the unsold items to better use than simply tossing them in the trash. So far, she said, she has gotten no response.

On Monday night, Pepa’s shopping bag held a few items. She pointed to her gray sweatpants. “From here,” she said.

How about coats?

“Maybe tomorrow,” she said.

Happy 75th Birthday to The King!

In honor of Elvis's 75th birthday today (and because this reminds me of a very fun party I attended two years ago), Little Merry Sunshine pays homage to The King with these videos. Enjoy!

Blue Suede Shoes


Amazing Grace


Suspicious Minds


Unchained Melody


Can't Help Falling In Love

Customer Service Then and Now

Anyone who deals with the public is in customer service. I don't care if the position is janitor. If someone deals with the public, then they are in customer service. And even if their position doesn't explicitly deal with the public, but they happen to run into a customer of their company, they are now in customer service.

Nana worked in customer service for 40 years for what is now Bank of America (it started as Ellis National bank, then it became NCNB, then NationsBank and now it's Bank of America). She started out as a teller and through hard work over the years, she was promoted to Vice President of the Tarpon Springs, FL branch. Every step of the way, she dealt with the public. And every single day, she loved helping her customers. Whether it was helping a customer buy a $50 savings bond, open a checking account, or helping them with bigger issues, she loved helping people. She believed it was an honor to be able to serve people and knowing her the way I did, I can say with absolute certainty that she never once uttered the words "it's not my job."

One time, an elderly woman Nana had known for many years came into the bank with a man wanting to empty out her account in cash. Nana was with another customer, but overheard the woman telling another employee of her desire. Not recognizing the man and knowing the woman's family well , Nana called the other employee over and told her to stall the woman until Nana was finished with her customer. When Nana finished helping the first customer, she called the son of the elderly woman to make sure this was legitimate. It turned out the woman was being scammed by someone with less than scrupulous desires and because of Nana's intervention this was prevented.

I remember another incident a few months after she retired. The phone rang one day and it was her former boss. It seemed that he had a rather prominent (read: wealthy) customer in front of him who was upset with something the bank had done and was prepared to withdraw all his funds from the bank. The bank manager apologized for the error and tried in vain to talk the customer down. Finally, he asked the customer if there was anything he could do to keep his business. The customer responded that the only person who could convince him that this wouldn't happen again was Frances Paulk, even though she had nothing to do with the problem he was experiencing with the bank. Nana was only asked to speak to the customer on the phone, but she had known him for years and so she got in the car and drove to the bank to meet with him and reassure him that the issue would be resolved in his favor and would never happen again. Nana kept this man's accounts with the bank.

Her outstanding customer service was rewarded many times over; she won many awards from the bank for her superior service and even won the "Courtesy Award" given by the Tarpon Springs Chamber of Commerce. Customers waited in line to be helped by Nana even when other bank employees were available and could assist them. She had customers who were loyal to her for all of those 40 years. On her last day at NationsBank, customers showered her with flowers and gifts to thank her for all that she had done for them over the years. They came in person to thank her for her service and to tell her how much she had helped them. If they couldn't come in person, they sent letters and cards. In fact, there are two drawers full of letters from customers (or their family members) written over 40 years thanking her for her service to them and the way she especially helped to protect her elderly customers.

At her visitation and funeral in July, I can't begin to count the people who came up to me with stories of how Nana had helped them and shown them how to balance their checkbook or explained the benefits of CDs over a passbook savings account to give them the best interest rate. Her service was based on a selfless desire to help others be their best. Of course, she also worked during a time when her paycheck wasn't based on how many CDs she sold or how much she "up sold" people, so they always knew that whatever she told them was in their best interest and had nothing to do with her own best interest.

Contrast that to the customer service of today.

Mom and I had to visit a large national bank today. While we were waiting for assistance, a woman who appeared to be in her late-60s or so asked the bank manager if this bank had passbook savings accounts. He said no. She then volunteered that a local community bank did. He again replied that they didn't have them. She said she understood, but that she wanted a passbook savings account (you remember the "old fashioned" kind where you had a book like a checkbook register and the bank would imprint your activity in it every time you came to the bank) and would be switching to their smaller competitor for this service. The manager's only response was okay. He did not attempt to help the woman who was clearly a customer with services the bank offered or even ask her questions about her perceived benefits of a passbook savings account. He simply said okay and let the woman and her business walk out the door.

I wish we could get back to a time when companies cared about their customers and not just about the money they could bring in. When a verbal commitment meant action would be taken or that a promise was sealed. When businesses valued their customers and would not be so willing to just let them walk out the door unhappy.

What I know for sure is that when Nana first went to work in the banking industry, her bank was a small community bank because that's all that existed in 1954. Up until the late-1990s, her bank had that community feel, even though they were nationwide. Or maybe it was just my perception because I could pick up the phone and call any branch, say I was her granddaughter and have the red carpet rolled out for me.

I think that the solution for this problem is simple: Patronize only locally-owned, small businesses whenever possible. Reward businesses that provide superior customer service with more business. Say thank you for outstanding service. Go up the chain of command and not only thank the employee, but praise that person to his or her manager.

As for myself, as a business owner, I am committing myself to upping my own customer service and loyalty to my customers in 2010.

Getting Healthy in the New Year

I found this great article on CNN about getting healthy in the new year and giving 20 ideas on how to do so for free. Because I care about your health (and mine) so much, I've reprinted it below.

20 Ways to Get Healthier for Free
by Jacqueline Froeber, Health.com
December 25, 2009

(Health.com) -- Celebrate the New Year with a new you -- by dipping into our smart batch of strategies to keep you happy and healthy (at no cost!) all year long.

Borrow (don't buy) your next fitness DVD

Join the local library -- for the workout DVDs. Most libraries have a big selection, the perfect antidote to a boring (and pricey) gym routine. And because the key to sticking with exercise is to keep it interesting, you can switch it up (cheaply) as often as you want.

Get a free skin checkup

The Skin Cancer Foundation will provide free skin screenings during its Road to Healthy Skin Tour from April to September 2010. Check SkinCancer.org this spring for availability in your area.

Order a free health calendar

Get one from the National Women's Health Information Center. The 2010 calendar lists recommended health tests, reveals surprising symptoms of serious health conditions, and offers important advice on how to read drug labels and get a second opinion.

Surf for deals

Thunderfap.com, FreakyFreddies.com, and Freemania.net have free-by-mail samples and coupons for items like hand sanitizer, bandages, deodorant, tampons, and toothpaste. Ebates.com gives cash back for purchases at stores like Drugstore.com, Bath & BodyWorks, DERMAdoctor.com, GNC, Kiehl's, Nutrisystem, and many more.

CouponCraze.com has discounts for anti-allergy bedding, humidifiers, and dehumidifiers. And RetailMeNot.com features coupons for contact lenses and supplements.

Get a free radon test

Radon, an odorless natural gas present in many homes, is the leading cause of lung cancer deaths among nonsmokers. January is National Radon Action Month, so visit the Environmental Protection Agency's Web site to check the availability of free or low-cost test kits in your state.

Click off the weight

Studies show that interactive online-weight-loss programs help people drop pounds and maintain weight loss, too. To get diet counseling, try SparkPeople.com. You can access calorie-counting tools at http://www.CalorieCount.about.com.

Strike a pose

Try your Downward Dog for free -- or pretty cheap -- thanks to the Internet. Every week, Yoga Today streams a free, one-hour class. (Downloads cost $3.99.) Also, mark Jan. 23, 2010 on your calendar: it's Yoga Day USA, when yoga centers around the country will offer free classes. (Check YogaDayUSA.org for availability in your area.) Why yoga? It hikes flexibility and strength, provides help for relieving stress and controlling weight, and lowers risks of heart disease and sleep problems.

Bargain hard

Many health clubs and gyms are willing to cut you deals or give you free passes to try their facilities. Bally Total Fitness, Gold's Gym, and 24 Hour Fitness offer free seven-day trials. Remember: everything is negotiable. And once you're a member, train with a buddy to cut trainer costs in half, or sign up for 30-minute training sessions instead of hour-long ones. Bonus: Besides being cheaper, the shorter workout may move faster and be more intense.

Do a smoke checkup

Some local fire departments offer smoke alarms (a potential lifesaver, considering up to 20 percent of the alarms installed in people's homes don't even work) for free or at discounted prices. Speaking of smoke: if you're trying to stop smoking, call 800-784-8669 to find a coach who'll help you kick the nasty habit for free. Quitting will not only save you money but also lower your risks for heart disease and cancer.

Create a medical family tree

Start planning a healthier future today by asking relatives about their health conditions and those of your ancestors. Then visit this site from the U.S. Surgeon General's Office to create a free Family Health Portrait that reveals your risks. Raising health awareness this way can help lower your risk of major diseases.

Save $170 in the shower

That's how much you can cut from your water bill each year by taking shorter, cooler showers, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Your budget and your skin will thank you. Hot water causes blood vessels to expand, causing you to lose more moisture, says Dr. Jeannette Graf, assistant clinical professor of dermatology at Mt. Sinai School of Medicine in New York City. To keep your skin soft and supple, limit showers to around five minutes and think warm, not hot.

Snag free health apps

There are about 3,000 iPhone applications designed to boost your health and fitness -- and many are free. Swine Flu Tracker Map pinpoints where people in your area are sick with the H1N1 virus. MyNetDiary has 91,000 foods in its database to help you plan healthy meals, and its community forum is reviewed by a registered dietitian. Free Menstrual Calendar helps you predict your periods and fertile days. FitnessKeeper uses GPS tracking for runners who want to keep tabs on their distance, speed and calories burned. And one of our personal favorites: Vibrating Massager literally turns your iPhone into a feel-good massager. (Yep, there's an app for that!)

Boost your immunity

To help keep winter colds at bay, get free samples of Emergen-C powdered multivitamin packs at EmergenC.com. Each packet contains 1,000 milligrams of vitamin C -- more than 10 times your daily requirement -- plus other antioxidants and energy-boosting B vitamins.

Moisturize for free

Stop by Sephora stores across the country and ask for a free sample (you can literally try out hundreds of moisturizers), and you'll get three more freebies -- like Dylan's Candy Bar Birthday Cake Batter Body Smoothie Lotion or Bliss All-Around Eye Cream -- if you buy something at Sephora.com. And at Aveda.com, you'll get a free Tourmaline Charged Exfoliating Cleanser sample when you buy any two Tourmaline Charged skin-care products.

Eat healthier, no cookbook required

Got a tummy ache that needs some soothing? Try the Belly Balance Smoothie (developed by Health magazine nutrition guru Frances Largeman-Roth, RD) and find loads of other good-for-you, low-calorie options for every meal at recipes.health.com.

Tweet for discounts

Follow your favorite stores on Twitter and get hot sales alerts and great advice. Twitter.com/targetdailydeal offers new discounts every day on items like vacuums, healthy cookware, and bedding. Twitter.com/walgreens brings you deals like 25 percent off eco-friendly makeup applicators, $10 off purchases of $40 or more on vitamins and supplements, and other discounts on products like diabetes tests. And Twitter.com/Clinique_US features all kinds of useful free tips like this one: to give parched skin a dewy look, mix foundation with a drop of moisturizer in your palm and smooth over your face.

Try a new sport

You've always wanted to try cross-country skiing, right? As part of its anniversary sale on January 9, WinterTrails.org will help you try it for free at a location near you.

Give and get for free

Loads of useful items from babyGap, Science Diet, Tempur-Pedic, Love My Belly, and more great brands are available for free on the grassroots network Freecycle.org, a smart online location for secondhand giveaways. The site's goal is to keep good stuff in use instead of letting it get thrown away and end up harming the environment. Keep in mind: available items change daily.

Sign up for a free pedometer

JustKeepMoving.com, a healthy-lifestyle-information site from the company that makes Tylenol, will send you a pedometer (while supplies last) if you register. Studies show that using the simple gadget is an effective weight-loss tool.

Talk it out

There's a free self-help group out there for what­ever is bothering you, whether it's physical or mental. Find a searchable database of about 1,000 support groups for people dealing with acne, addictions, allergies, breast cancer, headaches, infertility, eating disorders, OCD, parenting, and many more issues.

New Year's Message from President Obama

I know this is a bit late, but President Obama wishes you a Happy New Year.