Miscellaneous Musts

Yes, it's that time again! Today's post includes Musts on some of my favorite topics: dental hygiene, hair care, music, scrapbooking, and FOOD!

8. The Hennepin Theatre District Broadway Season Pass. I'm pretty sure I've said this one before -- maybe even very recently -- but it bears repeating. My bff and I treated ourselves to Broadway season tickets this year, and it's been one of the best ideas we've had. We get to see six nationally touring shows, plus park for free, for about $25 a show. Now, granted, our tickets are usually Tuesday nights and in the nosebleeds, but it's been a totally phenomal experience anyway. We've only got one show left of our Season and I'm totally sad. If you live in the general vicinity of Minneapolis (or even not -- it's a 2 hour drive for me), I'd highly recommend checking out Hennepin Theatre District's website and pursuing a season pass.

7. Diet Orange Sunkist. Though there's really no redeeming qualities, health-wise, about this soda (other than being calorie-free -- at least Diet Coke has a relatively low sodium count)...it's delicious. 'Nuff said.

6. Plackers, the flossers for lazy people. Once again, my neverending quest for spectacular teeth has led me to an item I used previously but had since forgotten about. No, that's a lie; I'd just been using a cheaper and much less effective version. Plackers are mini-flossers that work well for people who, like me, may have big dirty mouths but small jaws (tangent: I'm not even kidding -- my dental hygienist used to give me a baby toothbrush at my checkups so that I could effectively brush my back teeth). Plackers are the best -- don't be fooled by generic brands! The floss won't shred, which means that if, like me, you have problems getting at your back teeth with traditional floss, you can simply position the floss between the teeth, then bite down on the pick and voila! Flossage has happened. Plus, in the package, Plackers includes an awesome finger-sized carrying case so you can stash some emergency flossing tools in your purse without worrying about what kind of purse germs got on them.


5. Duck Permanent Easy Stick Adhesive Rollers for scrapbooking. These things rule. Introduced to me first by my fellow scrapbooker extraordinaire (okay, we're both novices, but entirely too addicted), I've since fallen in love with the smooth and easy application this stuff provides. We got a bunch at the amazing Always A Dollar (aka Scrapbooker Heaven) in Elk River, but you really can't find 'em anywhere else. Well, I found a lady who's selling them on eBay but she's got a major racket going, what with charging like $5 to ship a single applicator. Double-yew tea eff??

4. My sexy new shoes from Payless. I'm pretty sure there's no better place for a perpetual shoe-fiend like myself to shop. Like many other things in my life (handbags included), I'm fascinated with new shoes -- and quickly get bored of them. I love to buy shoes, but refuse to pay very much for anything that the irritatingly logical part of me deems less than "practical." In fact, it was very telling that the moment I saw these shoes (red and patent-sheen though they may be), I knew I was going to buy them. Even at the bargain price of $19.99, I'd usually have to hem and haw for at least ten minutes before buying them, and then I'd suffer from buyer's remorse until I put them on again. But I think it was the little almost-kitten heel that did me in, and the not-too-pointy pointy toe. Plus, they looked hot with my jeans. Wanna see em? Go here.

3. The Colgate Motion Battery Powered Toothbrush. Yes, I'm a freak about oral hygiene. Every night I use two kinds of mouthwash, plus I brush my teeth, and floss (as noted above). I love battery powered toothbrushes, because they appeal to my lazy side and take out the very minimal amount of work necessary to remove plaque from my teeth. The Colgate Motion is a great power toothbrush -- very fast, with a tiny little brush head (see below) that fits into my tiny little jaw (also as noted above). Plus, for under $4 at my local discount store -- including 2 AAA Energizer batteries -- you really can't beat the price.


2. Sunsilk Anti-Poof Conditioner. Yeah, I know. I'm expounding the merits of a different conditioner every other month, it seems. But I really love the Sunsilk line from Helene Curtis. I've tried the Anti-Frizz and loved how it made my hair look, but it didn't tame my major problem. For better or worse, I've got an insanely thick head of hair, and that means I never have to deal with too little volume. The Anti-Poof formula (with jojoba oil, natch) apparently keeps the hair follicle from "expanding" as it dries, therefore making my hair smoother and less white-girl-Afro. Two thumbs up.


1. The movie Juno. Once again, I came late to the party -- just because I write Must Lists doesn't mean I'm on top of things the way I should be. But I laughed the whole way through (cried a little, too). Screenwriter Diablo Cody's irreverent dialogue and Ellen Page's drily witty delivery is unbeatable. See it. I expected offbeat but didn't expect heartwarming -- and got both.

Music Musts:
Soundtrack to The Last 5 Years: Still Hurting
Secondhand Serenade's new album A Twist In My Story, specificially: Your Call, and Why
David Archuleta of American Idol's live recording of: Imagine
Leona Lewis: Bleeding Love
Honeydogs: I Miss You
I Nine: If This Room Could Move and Seven Days of Lonely
The Spill Canvas: All Over You
Anna Nalick: Shine (my new ringtone, actually)
The Summer Obsession: Disappear

Note: This Must List is x-posted in Jessa's personal journal, Myspace, and Facebook.

Teresa's Trip to the Drug Store

This post is reviewing 3 new things I picked up at the drug store on the way home that I have never tried before, well technically there were 4 new things, but the 4th will have to come later when I can see the results in the morning. The 3 things this evening however all involve your teeth, two things that are good for them.... and one that is not so good.

The Good:
1) Act Restoring Mouthwash Anti-cavity in Cool Splash Vanilla Mint. Let me tell you, I JUST rinsed with this and it was GREAT. While it has the typical OH MY GOD MY MOUTH STINGS feeling that all mouthwashes give you, it has a very pleasant aftertaste and for once I don't feel the immediate need to vigorously wash my mouth out with water afterward. You can't taste the vanilla while you are rinsing, only the mint, but you can afterwards and it helps to sooth your gums from the stinging assault that is mouthwash. Some other interesting facts about ACT is that it is the #1 recommended by dentist brand among fluoride rinses, which based on my investigation this afternoon was slim. Listerine, Scope and Crest either do not have Floride (which is essential to teeth health) or they only have half the amount in ACT. The Best Part: My teeth were REALLY sensitive today, as of late I've had a problem with clinching my jaw and it has moved into my teeth a bit. After one rinse, the tenderness of the day is gone and my teeth feel clean. And for all you Cinnimon lovers out there.....it also comes in Cinnimon Flavor as well :) www.actfluoride.com

2) Crest Glide Deep Clean Cool Mint Floss. I was in desprite need of more tooth floss since I unraveled the last of mine a few days ago and I'm still a week from seeing the dentist. During my stop to the drug store I had some really annoying reminents of my lunch left over in my teeth which reminded me to buy floss in the first place. In an concerted effort to try new things for our blog I chose this product. This is a product that while the intial use is not noticable since it works where we can not see, I am confident that it will work. I love Glide in the first place, all flavors. Most floss has a horrible habit of getting stuck between my overly crowed teeth in the first place. The Glide is a flatter piece that is easy to navigate in tight places. As soon as you open the package you can smell the mint and its enticing lure. My teeth feel clean, what more can I say???

Crest Glide Information

The Bad....the very very very very VERY bad:

3) Marshmallow Peeps Coco Bunnies. As if marshmallow peeps were not already so incredibly addictive I've considered checking myself into Betty Ford for Peep rehab (the with-drawls can be nasty!), now they've gone and added chocolate to the mix. I already had the floss and mouthwash in my hands when my wandering eye caught site of the easter peep display...my FAVORITE time of year!! I was impulsive and bought my regular box of little birdies and since they were buy one get one free at Rite Aid I decided to pick another color when my eyes caught sight of the bunnies and this new 'flavor' of coco. Little brown bunnies all nesseled together like their purple, yellow, pink and blue counter parts. I grabbed them and decided to give it a try. Of course they never made it out of the parking lot I was so curious about the possibility of their taste and AH what a sweet taste it was! It wasn't as chocolatey as I expected, but they were still awesome. Instead of being coated entirely in sugar, they are dusted with a combo of sugar and coco to give them a light chocolate taste and kill those chocolate cravings without eating a snickers bar. In research for this segment on the PEEPS official website I found they have many different new ways of enjoying Peep Heaven making it very difficult for some like me to stay on the wagon. Included in their new line up is the following: Tulip Peeps in 3 and 6 count, the afformentioned coco peeps in 8 count, decorate your own peep eggs kit, sugar free yellow peeps for people like my sister, A chick in a milk chocolate egg and orange creme eggs.

Here are a couple of other sites that I found incredibly amusing when I was doing my research:

http://www.peepresearch.org/ The section about how peeps are effected by smoking and alcohol is hilarious!

Peeps on Wikipedia

http://www.i-mockery.com/minimocks/peep-game/Hilarious Peep themed games modeled after classic Atari games space invaders and Asteroids.

(As you can tell....I am a HUGE fan of the marshmallow peeps...hence why I need anti cavity mouthwash!)

Ingrid Michaelson- Girls and Boys

I requested this CD for my birthday and my sister managed to find it at Wal-mart however obscure it is, I thought for sure she would have to go on the internet to get it. I ran across Ingrid Michaelson a few weeks prior to Christmas while perusing myspace pages and heard her song on someone's profile. It caught my attention and I wandered to her page to listen to more. I was instantly hooked and marked her as a friend so I could go back to it to listen to more. I must have listened to the songs posted on her page for DAYS. I could relate to just about everyone. Keep Breathing which is not on the album Girls and Boys is however on the Grey's Anatomy Season 3 Sound Track. One of my favorite songs on this album is Breakable the lyrics go as such, Have you ever thought about what protects our hearts/Just a cage of rib bones and other various parts/So it's fairly simple to cut right through the mess/And to stop the muscle that makes us confess. Michaelson's music makes you think about life in a different way, and despite the sometimes slow melodies, her music is mostly upbeat, making it perfect for a relaxing soak in the tub, or in my case while doing homework. Overboard is another favorite of mine, it expresses how some women feel about being strong and independent (like myself) and then when that perfect guy comes along and sweeps us overboard, we never thought it would happen so easily. I encourage you to take a listen to it.

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=11436578

http://www.ingridmichaelson.com/index.html

Cheap But Not Easy: A Shopper's Blog

So you love to shop, but you hate to spend money? You've got to check out this blog. [http://cheapbutnoteasy.blogspot.com for those who are link-deficient.] The author is a single Realtor who lives in the Twin Cities Metro area who has undertaken a year-long experiment to not spend more than $20 on any one thing for an entire year. Think it's impossible? Clearly, it's not, as she's in her seventh month of the experiment.

"Cheap But Not Easy" details the Cheap Chick's journey -- where she finds cheap clothes, free haircuts, and other fantastic details. It's not to be missed if you're a bargain hunter/clearance-rack stalker/discount store tycoon.

Extra special thanks to KARE-11 News (out of Minneapolis/St. Paul) for the Extra that clued me in!

Sutter Home White Zinfindel 4-Pack

While the name suggests a white wine....its actually blush, but who's counting right? It has a sweet taste to it, perfect for chicken or sea food (it was great with eggplant parmasean). It doesn't have the a rich flavor, its nothing out of the ordinary when it comes to wine, but its good, especially when you are having cruddy night and just want to relax. Its reasonably priced as well. The Best Part: For those of us who take FOREVER to finish a bottle of wine or have a very small refridgerator, the 4 packs allow for easy storage as well as keeping the wine fresh by having 4 single servings ready for consumption!

[Must List Admins!]

Because I'm a big nerd, I went through and labeled our posts -- "music", "household", and "food", for example. I figured that when our Must List gains notoriety and fame on the intarwebs, it'll make it easier for people to search our awesome reviews. I hope y'all are okay with that. ;)

The Avenue Q Soundtrack

Avenue Q is the soundtrack to the quintessential pseudo-cynical American life. With Sesame Street-like, sing-along worthy songs such as "What Do You Do With a B.A. in English/It Sucks to Be Me" and "The Internet is for Porn", it's hard not get addicted to these goofy (and yet somehow deeply insightful) ditties.

The musical itself it terrifically hysterical and irreverent; the music translates well enough to stand on its own even if you haven't had the pleasure of sitting in the audience and gawking at the ridiculous puppets/human interaction.

After all, how can you not sing along with lyrics like this? "I'm kinda pretty, and pretty damn smart / I like romantic things like music and art / And as you know, I have a gigantic heart /So why don't I have a boyfriend? / Fuck! It sucks to be me!"

Pick up the album and prepare to laugh. After all, as the soundtrack so eloquently reports, we've all got a bit of schadenfreude and can use a smile at the expense of those less fortunate...