a few of my favorite things...

I, like Oprah, have a few favorite things.

I, unlike Oprah, am not going to give them away.

Just sharing the thoughts, not the goods!

All-Time Favorite Thing for Winter: Land's Ends Dory Jacket
Before we went to NYC for Thanksgiving, I realized very last-minute that I didn't have appropriate outerwear. This happens when one has been living in Brazil for nearly four years. I checked Land's End, found this jacket, which was rated for temperatures 5-25 degrees F. The best part? The price. At just $30, it's a steal.

I splurged for quick shipping - remember this was last-minute - and was very dismayed when the Land's End envelope was delivered and it was so thin that it looked like it might contain a pair of wool socks. Certainly, there was no way my new cold-weather jacket could be in that very thin package.

But it was and after confirming the temperature rating on the Land's End website (the rating assumes you'll have a shirt and sweater underneath), I took it to NYC, sure that I would need to buy a heavier coat there.

I have road-tested this thing now in NYC (in pretty moderate temperatures), Chicago (in windy, windy cold and blowing snow), in England (in temperatures below freezing and in really, really cold and windy rain), and now in SC (which might be -surprisingly - the biggest test of all!), and this jacket is a modern miracle. It's dressy enough to wear with dressier outfits but casual enough to wear with jeans. Best of all, it's warm and SO THIN. You don't feel all uncomfortably bulked-up. And for the price? Well, it's a no-brainer. I LOVE IT!


A Favorite Thing When Traveling With a Child: Apple iPod TouchWhen we moved back to the US, I spent entirely too much time trying to decide what cell phone to buy. I really wanted an iPhone but could not bring myself to pay the price for the newest generation of iPhone that had just come out plus I heard discussion that AT&T customers weren't happy with the coverage in this area. I bought a Blackberry Curve instead (it was only $49 at a Verizon promotion!) and have been very well pleased.

As our England trip got closer and closer, I got more antsy about not having Internet access. When you buy a Blackberry Curve, you are basically saying that you will never go to Europe and expect to have a working cell phone. I knew this when I purchased it and didn't care about a working cell phone. Internet? Can't live without it.

So I went to Best Buy to study the iPod Touch. As you know, I am not a technological whiz. In fact, my skills rank right up there with those of my nearly one year-old nephew Blair. We just smile on command and try to look pretty without spitting up on ourselves. Salespeople in Best Buy in December are as hard to find as Mark Sanford on the Appalachian Trail, so without anybody there to help me and answer my questions, I called our friend Jeremy, who walked me through the finer points of iPod Touch-iness.

This thing is a dynamo and you do not have to be a techno geek to figure it out. Not only have I backed up every CD we own - yes, our entire music collection - on this thing, I have added some game applications for Mac and I even figured out how to rent movies from iTunes so Mac could watch them in transit and during the vacation (it has a very decent battery life). A real lifesaver when you just need a few minutes of quiet during stressful travel. The best part for me (besides the quiet)? Having access to the Internet wherever there was Wi-Fi (like in our rented cottage in the Cotswolds). I'm an insomniac when Jimmy's not home, so I keep it on my bedside table so when I can't sleep, I can read emails or surf the web.

My Favorite Guilty Pleasure - little crunchy ice and a Coca-Cola from Zaxby's or Sonic


Really the drink is just a vehicle by which you get the ice. As much as I warn Mac about the perils and long-lasting consequences of chewing ice, if I had a Sonic or Zaxby's next door, I would just hang out there all day long to use the ice machine. I think a Coca-Cola tastes better on that little crunchy ice, and those little ice pellets just chew up so nice and easy. God bless the small pleasures of life.


You know, on second thought, I will do an Oprah giveaway. Next time you come to see me in Summerville, I will take you to Zaxby's or Sonic - your choice - for a Coke on crunchy ice!