Good and/or Great Ideas to keep in mind for 2010

We all learn our little lessons throughout our life. Some of them make us smarter. Other lessons make us, in another similar sense, NOT AS DUMB.

1. Eat before you go shopping. It helps you save money. When you're hungry and happen to walk down the oatmeal/cereal row, everything looks so... freaking... delicious. I literally have gone down the foreign foods aisle and started craving curry sauce.











2. Sing as loud as you can to music when you drive at night. Scream if you have to. The louder the song, the better. This way your mind is awake and you're not drowsing off into dreamland (which happens to be the next ditch or underpass).
ADDED BONUS: It will keep other drivers alert if they see you screaming at your windshield. Oh no...I'm sharin' the road with one of them crazed maniacs.













3. Sell your textbooks early. Yup, another money saving tip but seriously publishers come out with a new edition almost every freaking year. Wait too long and no one's gonna buy your book back. That's $3,215,890,813 you paid for that stupid thing down the drain.




















4. Create and save an ongoing Christmas list. I know once December hits, I'm not thinking about what I want to get for Christmas, I'm more stressed about what to get everyone else. As the year progresses, remember things that would be nice to have and create a Christmas List Word Document. Know what I thought up today? Ross gift card. Yeah. Original. I should probably change it to a Charlotte Russe gift card. Yup. Much better.













5. Change and/or wash your bedsheets and blanket at LEAST once every month. Just do it. Please. It seems like it should be common sense but you'd be surprised how many people don't.















6. Aaaand watch JaneTV. :) Had to throw it in. Oh and also my lovey dovey website.



Got some feedback earned, lessons learned? Comment below on what you've learned in the last year.

Don't Get Sick!

Wow Thanksgiving has already come and gone. Can you believe its less than a month until Christmas? It's a stressful time of year sometimes and too many friends and family are getting sick and missing out on the fun and festivities of this time of year. It's also a bummer if we miss out on a long hard day at work because we've got a migraine and the sniffles. Not too many people understand that we can prevent colds. Keep these tips in mind as you go on your day, especially this time of year. It's frustrating when you're sick. You can't enjoy the time spent with family as much as you'd like to. Here's how to prevent a cold.

1. Keep stress level low - Stop putting yourself in charge of everything. Don't pile your to-do list so much. You'll seriously topple over. What keeps you the busiest this time of year? Delegate it out. You don't have to put off something if it stresses you out, just get someone to help you.

2. Do some water aerobics - Okay, maybe not water aerobics if its -34 degrees F outside but exercise keeps you healthy and you should be out on your feet doing something. Walk up the stairs as opposed to an escalator or elevator at the mall or work. Ride your bike to the grocery store. You could even *gasp* run or walk for 30 minutes a day. I know, I know. You're no Arnold Schwarzenegger.

3. Candy = bad - It seems like a bad season to say this but we really need to cut back on the sweets. We shoved it in our mouths at Halloween so now we need to take a break and limit ourselves. It's one of those "quick energizers" so energy from candy/sodas/sugar wears off fast and could stress us out.

4. ZZZzzzzz.... - GET ENOUGH SLEEP. Get as much as you can. Your body charges itself while you sleep. If you're up on your feet or watching late night Telly, you're not giving your body the time it needs to re-energize itself.

5. Wash hands - It sounds cliche, but it's not. Do it for the sake of getting/spreading germs. Keep your sink handle and bathroom door knob clean as well.

6. Echinacea and Goldenseal - I've been taking Echinacea since my mom shoved it down my throat because I had a raspy voice. These 2 will help with symptoms and build immunity against competing bacteria that might get you sick.

7. Z-z-z-z-z-Zinc! - Do you get enough of it? Probably not. Zinc can be taken in forms of calcium-magnesium-zinc capsules and even lozenges. Take it. It's good for your body.

(Tips taken from eHow)

Reckless Driving

First of all, she was holding her phone with her shoulder when she turned her little red Cavalier onto the main street I was on. I could tell she was arguing with whom ever she was speaking to onto the phone because of the wide hand gestures and angry facial expressions she was giving out when I viewed her through my rear view mirror. Next thing I knew, she had moved over to the middle lane and sped past me. I don't know. Something about these kinds of drivers makes me a little mad. I look forward and she stops, not even at the light. She's about 40 feet from the turn, which I found she had been close to missing and stopped in the middle of the road to move over quickly. I was too close to wait for her to move over so I go ahead and pull in. She decides she would get in behind me and I see she stalls mid-lane, 2 or 3 cars behind her. She's still arguing on the phone, maybe a little more mad because of her current situation. She turns on her emergency lights as she fumbles for the key and starts it back up again so she could pull up behind me to turn.

Okay, to wrap up this vent, we really need to watch what we do on the roads, guys. I'm talking "techies", Generation Y's, Millennials. This girl was so close to being hit so many times today. We've been so wrapped up in the latest technology that we're taking it to places that it really shouldn't be messed with. Scrolling through your iPod or iPhone looking for songs or texting while driving really should not be happening. Too many things go on in front of you and really it kills your response time if something or someone were to jump out in front of you. Trust me, it has happened to me before, several times. In neighborhoods, in YOUR neighborhood, it is the worst. Keep an eye out for children. A short text message, even a tweet, is not worth a child's life.

So to end on a better note, there is hope for us! Haha. Remember bluetooth headsets? Yeahhhh. Those still exist and they still WORK. They might not be the fanciest looking thing ever but they are a great investment so we can keep our eyes and hands focused on driving. Holding a phone with your shoulder is dangerous. It limits your eyesight. Even just holding a phone with your hand is dangerous. We need to make sure we can have full control of the car. Are you looking to buy a new car? Check into bluetooth enabled cars. In the Fiesta, I a phone pad and the phone call will play through the speakers. It even has a little mic on the roof by the console light. It is extremely handy. If you're not looking into getting a car anytime soon, look into bluetooth enabled GPS's. Before I had the Fiesta, I would use my Garmin to answer calls.

Also, answer text messages when your car is stopped, whether it be at a light or at your destination. Texting is terrible to do when driving because you are staring at something other than the road.

It's really a great investment to look into bluetooth enabled devices. We need to do whatever we can to keep the roads safe. It's not just children's and other's lives we're saving. We are also saving our own.

Box o' Jane Crap Contest! Redux!

It's that time of year again! My 2 year anniversary is quickly gaining on us and its time for me to do some cleaning around my room. It's JANE BOX OF CRAP BOX THING CONTEST TIME!

Again, if you've ever participated in Woot's BOC giveaways, you know where I got the idea from. You don't have to pay shipping though! Here's the updated rules.



RULES!

1. Each entry is $1 USD
2. Up to 10 entries per person, please. If you WANT to give $100, by all means, feel free! You will only be given 10 entries though.
3. To enter, email me at jane.ds.tv[at]gmail.com telling me your screenname from where I know you, PayPal email address and how much you are entering. Entries due by October 24th.
4. PayPal payments only accepted.
5. Once payment has been received, please tell me the numbers you would like to be added to the drawing. (Example - You entered $5 in the drawing and your lucky numbers are 3, 18, 472, 94, and 44927. I will enter those numbers into the drawing! If you numbers have already been taken, I'll let you know to choose again.)
6. Winner will be randomly selected live on JustinTV on October 25, 2009 (my anniversary!).
7. Need not to be present to win. Just make sure I have your email address!
8. Everyone is invited to win!


Box is filled with tons of goodies, including a duct tape wallet made by yours truly! Winner will also receive a FREE JaneTV mug.

Again, email me for entries, and if you have any questions!


Also! Follow me on Twitter, add me on Facebook, and watch my YouTube vids!

Happy Cursive Day

The video will speak for itself.

World Habitat Day

Did you know:

- About 95 million people, one third of the nation, have housing problems including a high-cost burden, overcrowding, poor quality shelter and homelessness. (National Low Income Housing Coalition: 2004)

- UN-Habitat has reported that because of poor living conditions, women living in slums are more likely to contract HIV/AIDS than their rural counterparts, and children in slums are more likely to die from water-borne and respiratory illness. (UN-HABITAT: 2006)

- The number of low-income families that lack safe and affordable housing is related to the number of children that suffer from asthma, viral infections, anemia, stunted growth and other health problems. About 21,000 children have stunted growth attributable to the lack of stable housing; 10,000 children between the ages of 4 and 9 are hospitalized for asthma attacks each year because of cockroach infestation at home; and more than 180 children die each year in house fires attributable to faulty electrical heating and electrical equipment. (Sandel, et al: 1999)

These are very real situations going on in not just the United States but all over the world. Many people are living in, and some not even in unsuitable housing that you can't even consider a "home".

I have teamed up with Habitat for Humanity to help spread the word about World Habitat Day. The United Nations has designated the first Monday of October (this year it is October 5th, 2009) to be the day of awareness toward human habitat. You might remember back in my Fiesta Movement Mission #4 when I volunteered at a ReStore. This really got me hooked onto the organization and what it stands for.



This year Habitat for Humanity is holding a photo petition to raise awareness. President Obama, in a speech, said that "it all starts at home." What better way to raise awareness that human health and well-being starts with having a simple, decent place to live than to create a petition based on this phrase? Habitat's goal is to collect 500 photos on their Flickr group so that they may present the photos as a petition to deliver to the White House in honor of World Habitat Day 2009.

Remember to educate others and educate yourself about Habitat for Humanity's goal. Check out their resources and find ways to help out the world, starting with your own community. There might be people in your workplace, at your school, behind you in the grocery store checkout line, that might be struggling with their housing situation and nobody knows about it. We need a way to show those people that we care and we want to help.

Want to help from right where you're sitting? Donate today to Habitat for Humanity and help families build a better life.




Join Habitat for Humanity’s photo petition! Habitat needs our help to remind President Obama that human health and well-being starts with having a simple, decent place to live. Join me in reminding the U.S. government that “It all starts at home.” Visit http://www.habitat.org/gov/take_action/WHD_Photo_Petition.aspx, and follow the instructions to post your photo to Flickr.
If you submit your photo by September 25, 2009, Habitat will deliver your photo to the White House in honor of World Habitat Day 2009.

World Habitat Day info: http://worldhabitatdaynews.com/
Habitat for Humanity homepage: http://www.habitat.org
Habitat for Humanity Twitter page: http://twitter.com/Habitat_org
Habitat for Humanity Flickr group: http://www.flickr.com/groups/1190924@N23/
Habitat for Humanity Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/habitat

Mission 5 is in the works.

ADVENTURE MONTH IS ON US. Goodness gracious I cannot believe I actually picked this months mission. I'm nervous more about my ankles breaking rather than the act of it.

You'll find out soon what I'm to do in a week from today.

I never really got to chat about Mission 4. It went great! I had a blast helping out Habitat for Humanity...behind the scenes! I grabbed a couple buddies and we went and volunteered 4 hours at the H4H ReStore to clean/build/move things, pretty much whatever or where ever they needed us! Click here to see the video and pictures from it all.

I started school up again. I'm only taking 2 classes, Principles of Marketing and Keyboarding (aka. Typing). Both are great classes and things I'm actually interested in. I'm about 4 weeks ahead on the lessons in my keyboarding software so I don't really have to worry about that. Marketing is extremely interested and I can now see where I my fascination of customers/trends/demographics is going to be focused on once I graduate and get situated!

Which reminds me.... I have homework to do.

Alright, time for another entry of Nostalgic Jane. (Go back to Entry 1)

Entry 11: February 8, 2005
I just remembered another thing that happened between Daniel and me. It was my turn, one summer day, to pick the game to play. Well, being the girly-girl I was, I decided we should have a wedding. The boys groaned. I don't know how but I persuaded them to be part of my wedding. Jeffery decided to be the preacher, Daniel was forced to be the groom, and I, of course, volunteered to be the bride.

Setting up for the wedding wasn't very hard. We decided to have the wedding in Jeffery's next-door neighbor's front yard since she had pretty flowers in her garden.

Jeffery and Daniel stood at the garden as I slowly walked up to them holding a bouquet of dandilions. Jeffery cleared his throat and began, "Dearly loved, we are here today so Daniel and Jane can get married..." He paused while I giggled. "Um...do you guys have rings?" he looked at us.

"Yeah." Daniel tied a piece of grass into a circle. I did the same.

"Okay. Now give each other your rings." I handed my ring to Daniel as I tried to put mine on but it broke.

"Oh well." I shrugged.

"Okay." Jeffery grinned. "You have to kiss the bride!"

Daniel looked at me wide-eyed and blushing as I kissed him on the cheek.

New Starbucks Pricing

Yes, due to the economy we knew it was bound to happen. We just didn't want it to come this soon. Starbucks' popular beverages will be changing in price, some going up, some going down.

Here's some, not all, of what will be changing.


- Hot Brewed coffee - (T) -10 cents (G) 0 cents (V) +10 cents
- Iced Coffee - (T) -15 cents (G) +5 cents (V) +10 cents
- Latte - (T) -5 cents (G) +10 cents (V) 0 cents
- Mocha/Vanilla Latte - (T) +5 cents (G) +20 cents (V) +10 cents
- Caramel Macchiato - (T) +10 cents (G) +25 cents (V) +25 cents
- White Mocha - (T) +5 cents (G) +20 cents (V) +5 cents
- Coffee/Vanilla Bean frappuccino - (T) +5 cents (G) +15 cents (V) +5 cents
- Caramel/Mocha/Strawberrys&Cream frappuccino - (T) +10 cents (G) +10 cents (V) +25 cents
- Iced Tea - (T) -5 cents (G) +10 cents (V) +15 cents
- Add espresso shot - +15 cents
- Add soy, breve, dairy - +10 cents
- Add syrup - +10 cents

Like I said, this isn't the full list, it's just what I believe are the popular drinks for today. Yes, I know its frustrating but Starbucks isn't the only corporation having to change their pricing due to the economy.

There are many ways you can still save at Starbucks though. Remember the Gold Card? It gets you a year-long 10% discount off anything in the store (not including newspapers and gift cards) from the day you purchase it. Plus Starbucks will send little surprises as long as you register the card. Sometimes its a free drink on your birthday, a coupon to try one of our new beverages, maybe even a reload of your card! Even if you just have a regular Starbucks gift card, REGISTER IT! If you lose it, you'll be able to get it back, PLUS you get free syrups and milk upgrades (soy, breve, specialty milk) in your drink, and 2 free hours of wifi!

Alright, now to the mellowness that Jane used to be! (Nostalgic Jane starts here)

Entry 10: January 28, 2005
Mika silently walked down the hallway as her schoolmates rushed by her, too busy to notice the new student.
"I hate this," was all she kept saying to herself.
She passed a group of sophomore girls who snickered and teased her while she passed.
"I hate this."
She passed by a boy getting beat up by older students.
"I hate this."
She passed by the classroom where the SCRABBLE club played every Thursday.
"I hate this."
She got bumped into a wall while a boy ran past because he forgot his calculator in Algebra 3.
"I hate this," she said picking up her supplies that fell.
She stood up, turned, and fled. She ran fast. Past the classrooms, the bullies, and the teasers. She ran past the stress, the confusion, and the feelings of being alone. She ran far. She ran home.

Orange-u-tan.

I'm getting my replacement Fiesta Movement/Threadless shirt mailed to me! I'm so excited because I really loved this months shirt but I keep receiving the wrong size so there's no way for me to wear/promote! (Yes, the replacement is ALSO the wrong size but at least its a size bigger, not 3 sizes too small! Eek!) Woot for awesome Fiesta Movement gear!

I haven't been talking much about El Ninja Turtle Fiesta have I? Well, I hit 4900 finally! Or was it 4800? Hm...not sure. Anyway, the car is still running awesommmmmme. It's extremely smooth and so fun to drive around. Everyone who comments on it has something good to say about its style and performance (if I let them play around with it). It still could use a dome light in the back seat, especially when I'm carting around my brother at night and he drops something on the floor or I have to clean up Rice Krispies off the back seat.

My Mission #4 is TOMORROW! I'm going to help out a ReStore for Habitat for Humanity. If you've never heard of the organization, look into it! It's an awesome cause and I'd really love to help build a home one of these days! You should too! I'll actually be helping out the ReStore, which works sort of like a Goodwill/Salvation Army store. The money from the sales of all the donations goes toward supplies used toward the homes. It's real interesting and I can't wait to help as much as I can!

Onto the Nostalgic Janeblog! Start from the beginning if you haven't already!

Entry 9: January 27, 2005

Ode to a Tree (not in poem form)

Ode to a tree, how thou hast provided my shade from the dangerous ultraviolet rays from the sun. Waving in the wind, thou hast turned the carbon dioxide from my mouth into oxygen. What a wonderful feeling it is to see pictures of jungles and see a vast variety of deep green fluffs amongst the ground. Thou hast given thy life for my school supplies. Oh, how I need paper and pencils. I thank thee. I love thee so much for all of the habitats you provide for the squirrel, and the bird, and the koala, and the orangutan, and the raccoon, and the runaway child. Oh, runaway child. I love thee also. Do not be scared. Run home! Where was I? Oh yes. Tree. Oh how I love to see thee at Christmastime dressed in lovely decorations of crimson. Thou hast also provided heat for me in the yonder fireplace. Trees. Trees. Ode to trees. Thank ye ever so much for all ye hast given to me.

Time to play Catch-up

So, yes its been a couple, okay...about a week since I last updated my Nostalgic Jane blog. Guess its time for me to show you a couple at a time again. (Click here to start from the beginning)

Oh and I took my little foster brother bowling for the first time today. At first he didn't really enjoy it until he started hitting spares left and right yelling "I beat you!! I beat you twice!!" He's a little prodigy kid, I swear. He's also SO interested in all my computer stuff. He actually builds little "computers" and "iPods" and "cell phones" out of his little toys just so he can match me. He came up to me one day with a green plastic rectangle thing saying it played music so he could hook it up in his car. He has another similarly shaped object that he calls his cell phone, which he "calls" me often on.

I made the mistake of showing him my miscellaneous cord/wire box and he is soo intrigued by it wanting to know which cords go where. It's crazy. He asked me to add a charger to his "iPod" so he can charge it when it goes dead. It's cute.

Oh and speaking of prodigies, at the bowling alley I saw a guy named Kirk who looked a lot like Paras from justin.tv. The whole time he was there, he scored at least 1 perfect game and the rest of the games were all close to 300. It was crazy. I wanted to take a picture with him but he left before I could say anything.

Okay, (ouch!) just removed my Biore strip. Now onto the journals.

Entry 7: January 21, 2005 (multiple entries this day)
"Ti-a drink with jam and bread..." the middle school Honor Choir sang, a little too loud.
"Thats great! Just sing to your heart's desire. Louder!" I heard the director say.
Oh. I disagree. I thought to myself. Sing quieter.
"C'mon! The louder we sing, the better the judges will think we are! We've got four days! Y'all are doing great!"
Wow. If I was the director four days before competition with this choir, I'd cut out 2/3 of the people. And get a group of monkeys to replace them. They have a better voice.

Entry 8: January 25, 2005
Eenie, meanie, miney Moe.
Catch a tiger by its toe.
If he hollars let him pay
Fifty dollars everyday.
My mom told me
To pick the very best one
And you are not it.

Horrible tempered boy with nickname for Moses
Go out and hunt a wild striped cat and hold it by its foot
If he so happens to make a loud roar, force him to give you
Two twenties and a ten dollar bill every 24 hours
My maternal parent requested me
To choose a pure person out of a group
I will not choose you.

Many innocent rhymes do not make any sense at all. When we read them at a younger age, we think they are fun rhymes to play with. In reality, they are horrible and twisted. (Ex- "Cinderella/Dressed in yella/Went upstairs to kiss a fella/Made a mistake and kissed a snake/How many doctors did it take?/1, 2, 3, 4...etc.) I think the writers of these rhymes either like hearing children say twisted words or they just can't rhyme better words.

Futbol Americanooooooooooooo!!!

I love football, but apparently she doesn't.

Go here if you have no idea why I started this entry at the number 6.

Entry 6: January 21, 2005
Every Saturday and the occasional Sunday, Martin would paint his face, grab some money, and throw on his Vikings hat. He would call up some friends and they would leave an hour early even though the stadium was ten minutes away. I would sit at home for hours waiting for him to return. When he did, he had a huge smile on his face no matter the outcome and say, "How 'bout them Vikings? Honey, that game was great!" That was our football season.

NOT an emo post.

Yeah...sounds like an emo post. None of it's true, I just happened to write whatever this day.

Go here to start the journal posts from the beginning.

Entry 5: January 18, 2005
He drove a knife through my heart. From the inside out. It killed me. He broke my heart.
What did I do wrong? Did I deserve this? I am to blame.
I said we needed time apart. I never knew he would do this. I thought he loved me.
He ran away. Far away. He ran from me. To find another. Another one to replace me. Another one...to replace...me.
How did I fail? Was I the one who failed to love? I have always heart "To be loved, one must love in return."
He knows that I didn't love him. But I thought I did.
He left to replace me. With one who could love. Who could love him.
Gaah...I must learn.

Double the Entries...since I skipped a day...

Leaving to visit friends for my vacation down South today. Can't wait. This is a great vacation.

Well, looks like I missed a day updating. Silly, silly me. So here ya go. 2 entries for the price of...2.

Remember, these are entries from 4 years ago when I was back in high school! Go here to start from the beginning!

Entry 3: January 13, 2005
My sister swallowed a fly the other day. She didn't know it until after she swallowed it. A fly had tragically fallen into a 3-day old cup of water and drowned. My sister found the cup and drank out of it. I shrieked when I found out and looked into the glass. I whispered to her what had happened. She turned pale and left the room.

Entry 4: January 14, 2005
I can't wait until my birthday. It is in TWENTY days! I will have so much fun being seventeen. I know it will be the best year of my life. I need to celebrate! What should I do? What should I do? I want to have a party, but when? My birthday is on a Thursday so I can't have it on a school night. Jazz cafe is Friday and that will go on pretty late. I'm playing piano in that, anyway, so I will be tired. I can't do my party Friday. Saturday I am going out to dinner with my best friend to Joe's Crab Shack. I know I will have a fun time there. I would do it Saturday in the daytime but night time parties are more fun to celebrate at. So that crosses out Saturday. Sunday isn't even an option. I have church all day. We have a birthday bible study after evening services anyway. So there goes that weekend. Of course I can't have the party during the week, and that Friday I'm having a birthday dinner with my family. Saturday is a service project. Sunday is church. When will I celebrate my seventeeth birthday? When can I have my party? I have to celebrate!

Nostalgic Jane

This one was interesting. It's kind of a mix between a disturbing poem and an audio transcript. You'll see what I'm talking about.

(Go here if you've never seen an entry of Nostalgic Jane before.)

Entry 2: January 12, 2005
*Cough, Cough*
*Clears throat*
*Sniffle*
*AACHOO!*
"Bless you."
"Thank you."
"You're welcome."
"Click, Click, Click"
*Cough*'
*GASP*
*THUD*
"Oh my goodness!"
"Is he okay?"
"Call 911!"
*Beep, Beep, Beep*
*Clears throat*
"Someone is...
yes.
Thank you."
*Cough, Cough*
*Clears throat*
*Sniffle*
*AACHOO!*
"Bless you."
"Thank you."

Nostalgic Jane

Way back in 2005 during my high school years, I used to be a writer. My Junior year English teacher enforced each student that year to keep a journal to write in daily. She didn't care what we wrote about, as long as it was about a page long. I took this opportunity to let out all my silliness/whatever-I-happened-to-be-thinking-about.

So here begins Nostalgic Jane.

Entry 1: January 11, 2005
In addition to my last entry, even though I don't believe males have brains, cows have so much more fun than horses. I know horses get more attention than cows but what's so great about that? When the only time you get called is to give milk or get chopped up to be transformed into a hamburger, a cow has so much more time at hand...or hoof. Horses are almost always in a stable eating hay and being pointed at. Cows just roam a field, moo at passing people, eat fresh grass, and wonder what it'd be like to be a horse. Another thing: aren't udders so much more fun than manes? It's like having BREASTS on the STOMACH! They are the most recognizable feature on a dow if you don't qualify the black and white spots. That's how a parent can tell if a child had drawn a cow. Horses are hard to draw. They are so unfun. Please excuse my French.

Box o' Jane Crap Contest!

Win a random box of crap from my room! I really need to tidy it. Why not give it away!

If you've ever participated in Woot's BOC giveaways, you know where I got the idea from. You don't have to pay shipping though!



RULES!

1. Each entry is $1 USD
2. Up to 10 entries per person, please. If you WANT to give $100, by all means, feel free! You will only be given 10 entries though...
3. To enter, email me at jane.ds.tv[at]gmail.com telling me your JTV screenname PayPal email address and how much you are entering.
4. PayPal payments only accepted.
5. Once payment has been received, you will be given the next numbers in sequence of entries received. (i.e. If you are the 1st person to enter and you paid $6, you will receive the numbers [1,2,3,4,5,6]. The next person of $2 will receive [7,8], and so on.)
6. Winner will be randomly selected live on JustinTV using Random.org, a trusted random integer generator.
7. Need not to be present to win. Just make sure I have your email address!
8. Would love if this could be world-wide but this contest is limited to the 48 continental states (so...that means no Alaska and Hawaii, and no countries other than the US. Sorry...)


Box is filled with tons of goodies, including a very patriotic lizard keychain made (years ago) by me!

Again, email me for entries, and if you have any questions!


EDIT: 11:41pm 7/13/2009 - Winner will also receive a FREE JaneTV mug. :)

Funny thing about Keyless-Entry

As you know, I won the Ford Fiesta for 6 months so I've been finding cool little knicks about it, like how the rear-view mirror dims so headlights behind you don't blind you.

The Fiesta also has this cool thing called Keyless-entry. Each of the agents were equipped with a Fiesta hub, thats pretty much just the car remote yet there is no actual KEY. Anyway, as long as this hub is with you, you can push a button on the door handle to unlock the car and the Fiesta also has Push-To-Start, allowing you to push the power button to start the car as long as you have the hub in the car.

The cool thing about the hub is that really you just need it on you to start the car. As long as you have it started, you can literally throw the hub out of the window and drive away.

But the bad part about throwing the hub away means once you stop the car, you can't start it again. Tough luck.

Well, I had a scare today. I was out about 30-45 miles away from my house when I couldn't find my keys/hub. I searched my purse, my car, everywhere and couldn't find it. If the key hub is in the car, you can't lock the car again by pushing the button on the door handle. It senses it, making it virtually impossible to lock your keys in your car.

I noticed when I grabbed my purse that the doors wouldn't lock. It HAD to be somewhere in the car.

The car also has a button on the console allowing you to lock your doors with the push of the button. I tried pushing this and the doors locked. All of them. Didn't unlock.

Me, freaking out, got outside of my car and went into the gas station I was stopped. When I came back out, the driver's side door was locked...and...as I forgot before, I didn't have the key. Yeah, I was freaking out.

You're kidding me! was all I could think to myself.

I ran around to the other side of the car and to my luck, it was unlocked. The key was somewhere in the car. I just had to find it.

To make a long story short, turns out since I was in a rush to get out of the house when I left, I threw my pillow, knapsack and laptop bag in my trunk, along with my keys. With me still able to start the car, I didn't realize it wasn't in my purse.

Okay. I can breathe now.


Blog finished.

"Kindle"garten

Hey followers, guess what?? Through the Fiesta Movement I was able to snag one of these awesome Kindle readers! It's going to be used for my newest mission. Go check it out!

Anyway, this thing holds about 1,500 books and I need some good suggestions for it! I used to be a big reader. I loved retold fairy tales, cookbooks, comedies, etc. If you find anything awesome send a comment here! I'd love it! I need to fill this thing up so I can get my brain running again!

Thanks guys!

Road Rage

I just got done spending over an hour in stop-and-go-10mph-or-less traffic. It was quite a workout. I never thought I would lose weight in traffic until I started driving the Ford Fiesta. Working the clutch and driving with tint-less windows sure makes you feel like you're running laps...or doing crunches...out in the sun.

What I'm trying to get to is that a man driving a tow truck next to me in traffic witnessed my first rage attack on the road. All I did was the typical OfficeSpace Samir steering wheel shake but it was pretty big for me.

Poor car. It just doesn't deserve the Texas weather. The A/C just doesn't seem strong enough to cool it and I can just sense the decals on the sides melting in the sun.

Question from someone important

Someone important: (condescendingly) Why isn't your favorite color purple anymore?
Jane: Oh I just change every once in a while.
Someone important: So what is your favorite color now?
Jane: Well, I'm not set. I'm stuck between red and green.
Someone important: So...brown.

1st Mission Exposed

AGENT 48, if you wish to continue to begin your highly confidential mission, please press "Continue".

[*Continue*]

AGENT 48, as you know, you were chosen from over 4000 to become one of the top anticipated levels of the year. For this, I applaud.

[Stadium applause heard from speakers]

Now, your first mission will be exposed to you. Please attach the cords provided in the hatch above you to your temples on either side of your head. These will read your inner thoughts. In order to qualify to proceed with the mission, you must have a brain wave of 480-560 tps.

[Hatch opens, revealing wires and instructions in German. *Attaches*]

[7 beeps, pause, 2 beeps, pause, long beeeeeeeeeeep]

We will now proceed.

AGENT 48, your first mission will involve the satisfaction for mortal hunger. Surrounding your city of settlement, we have strategically placed hundreds of food preparation houses. Most of these prepare food at high speed. Of these places you must choose. With the preloaded credit card you will now find in your front pocket, you will need to drive your provided FORD FIESTA and find and enter a "fast food" establishment of your choice of favor and proceed to speak with the cash handling representative. You will need to make it clear that you will need each item featured on the menu above you. The representative may ask you to repeat this order. I give permission to do so until this person is clearly made known your request. Once payment has been transferred, you must wait until each item is prepared correctly.

As you can see from the hologram, there will be more than just you. In order for this to happen, you will need to provide your own choice of help. We will name these as trustees. The trustees aide you in transfer of the prepared food to your destination.

[hologram animates]

AGENT 48, when the food is finished, you and the trustees will need to take the food in your provided FORD FIESTA to a public establishment of your choice and disperse it all civilians.

You, nor the trustees, may NOT consume of any of the food.

The mission must be recorded by you or any trustee with any media device, including your provided SONY WEBBIE HD CAMERA.

[long beeeeeeeeeeeeeep]

This mission is to take place on the twenty first of the 5th month of our calendar during the year 2009 AD.

[another long beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep]

AGENT 48, keep in mind one thing:

I did it for the lulz. ;)

The mission is true though. Keep posted for new info coming soon.

Airplane Log

Jane's Addiction

Oh boy am I addicted to downloading mp3s. I just downloaded Jim Gaffigan's new album "King Baby" for $5 (yes, five bucks!) off of Amazon, plus I'm downloading 3 free mp3's from the iTunes store. As of now I have 3952 items, 10 days 8 hours 57 minutes and 36 seconds, or 16.75 GB of mp3s in my iTunes.

I just love music. I'm addicted to iTunes.

I was talking to a regular customer about music, iPods, and such and I happened to mention, "I think I have about 16 GB of mp3's in my iTunes" and her jaw dropped. Well, yes that's alot but why again do these people have 80 GB iPods?

Well, movies. Okay, movies and TV shows. I've only got one full movie, The Dark Knight, on my iTunes along with 6 short video clips of free things I downloaded from the iTunes store (which I should probably delete right now to save space).

I just always have this urge when listening to the radio, a DJ, or a YouTube video to find out what the name of the song is so I can listen to it whenever I want. And I don't just listen to it. I learn it.

The other sad thing is that I also love buying CD's. I hated cassettes. I'd always been excited in the early 90's when I would see an infomercial for a compilation album on TV and they would mention you could buy it on 8 cassettes or 3 CD's. I always thought it was some futuristic medium to listen to music. "Wooowww!! I wish I had a CD player!" For some reason back then, my parents didn't see a need for one. That's why I was extremely excited when we got a huge stereo system with a cassette tape deck, mic hookups, radio, record player, and CD player.

But now, I just love having a CD in my hand. I love the feeling of opening it for the first time and the adrenaline of waiting for the 1st song to play once I pop it into my CD player.

I've always been so intrigued with music. It's been a huge part of my life so everytime I hear a song, no matter what genre, I can't help but listen to the structure of it. The bass line, the drum beat, the guitar solos, the lyrics, the chorus, the verses.

So, that's my addiction.

A Package.

I can't get Justin.tv to work... Oh well. I got a package in the mail today. It's from Tennessee and I can't think for the life of me think of what it might be. Oh well. I'll open it soon.

So I've been reading up on the Twitter updates from the agents in LA and NY. They seem to be having a blast! LA's first meeting was in some kind of house. It looked interesting. NY looked more awesome. They held their first meeting in a banquet hall or something. It looked real nice and fancy. I wish I could've gone there.

Okay, time to broadcast on Ustream since I can't connect to Justin.tv. My viewers are playing around with the font colors and stuff. It's kinda funny. Okay bye!

Fiesta Movement

I feel so behind! I'd been checking out the Fiesta Movement page and found that almost everyone has created or tweaked their current blogs to revolve around the Fiesta Movement.

Wait...wait. What am I talking about, you say? I'm talking about the contest I joined back in the middle of March. This contest topped it all in my opinion. 100 "agents", they called 'em, had a chance to test drive and promote a 2011 Ford Fiesta for 6 months. Free gas. Free insurance. It's just you, a free car, and a mission each month to go out and promote the vehicle.

But the agents sounded the most interesting of all. Ford wasn't looking for TV celebrities, nor were they looking for the common people of the world. They were looking for top notch social networking internet stars. They needed people that could tell a story to their following online of their adventures and experiences with the car, no matter what they be.

Tia told me about the contest in February but I was still a bit iffy of the whole thing. We had to create a 3-5 minute YouTube video explaining yourself and why you would be a good agent for the Fiesta Movement, along with filling out an application online. There were about 10 videos already "favorited" on the site and after watching them I felt a bit nervous. How could I create an awesome submission video in the time alotted? The videos were good!

Then it hit me. Remember these videos?























Champura had helped me with these videos. I thought they were pretty awesome so I got him to join me on this mission to become an agent. We went and created the best video I'd ever submitted to YouTube. Take a gander.



It took about 2 straight weeks to prepare for. I had to get up early on my days off to record, get my business speech class to help record, stay up late on Skype calls, and drive my sister everywhere so I could get all my recording clips in as quickly as I could. It was quite a relief to have it finished that I almost forgot to actually apply for the contest.

As the deadline started gaining, fiestamovement YouTube vids started accumulating. 300...400...500...all the way up to almost 600 videos submitted by the deadline. In all there were about 4000 submissions, including straight applications without a video. This got me extremely nervous. Only 100 agents in the United States were going to be picked. The percentage was getting lower and lower by each passing day.

March 30, 2009


Watch live video from Jane? on Justin.tv
I was one of the first ones to be called!

We were going to have a training conference in Austin but that shortly after got cancelled due to the small amount of winners in the southwest region of the US (there were 3 of us down here) so they told us to choose another conference region. I chose Seattle. I'll be leaving May 1 for the 2-day conference and flying back May 2. I know the conference is going to be awesome but I still don't know what all to expect and what will be in store for me in the next 6 months!

So look forward to it! YouTube, Justin.tv, and Twitter are going to be my main mediums for this adventure. The car is awesome and I can't wait to meet others sharing the same experience!









Have comments/questions/concerns regarding me or the Fiesta Movement? Email me at jane.ds.tv[at]gmail.com. Thanks!

Skillz Contest!

ATTN: All recipients
SUBJ: Skillz Contest

Hello! I'm just touching base with you for a contest! You better hurry because entries are due SOON!!

Instructions:
Create a fan sign to put up on my channel! It will look something, hopefully better, like this pic.









All signs need to be "hard copies". Basically something you create with either pen and paper, paint and canvas, needlework, whatever you think is most creative! No photoshopping! Just you and your work! All you have to do is take a picture, upload and email it!

The fan sign that is the most creative and most captures what I am will be featured on my banner and you'll be given a $15 Starbucks gift card! (I believe the new spring card was made to replicate the Twitter bird. I love it!)








There you go! Anyone can enter! One will win! Just email all your submissions to jane.ds.tv@gmail.com by March 31, 2009 11:59pm US CST! There's only a couple days so get them in!

Good luck!

From this Moment on (Barista Version) NOW WITH LYRICS!!

From this Moment On (Barista Version) Lyrics

Rottweiler Babay
Baybay
Baby

It's really hot in Texas
ohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygod

*Grunts*

[clothes change]

...See your sweet face
From this moment on

From this moment
I have been blessed
I live only
For your happiness
And to make espresso
When you want it
Mocha cappuccinos are my strength

I give you one espresso shot today
And I'll give you another one tomorrow if you pay for one
This green apron used to be real clean
Until I made
Mocha sauce
And got the mocha
All over the place

From this moment
I hope you come back
And buy another one
Within 3 to 5 hours
Cause you'll feel tired
Because you'll get a crash
From this moment on

Ahhh!

Have you tried our new chai infusions today?
Or maybe the new vanilla rooibos tea latte
that everybody is ravin' about?
(it doesnt have any caffeine)
Here's a hot chocolate for your child to carry
I steamed
It at 120
Because if your kid drinks anything at 180
Their stomach will explode!

From this moment
We'll be making frappuccinos until we close
Because about 10 thousand teenagers just walked in
With their boyfriends
Who like to act tough
And get 4 espresso shots
In their drinks
And then regret it when they get home
Because they cant sleep
And their girlfriend won't get off the phone

Ooohoohooohooohooooh

Come back again!

Okay,
I gotta go to work now.

Fiesta Movement

I created a video submission for Ford's Fiesta Movement. Check it out! Comment/Rate/Share it! I'd appreciate it!

NEW HACKER/SCAM ALERT!!

There's a hacker roaming around and I see there is a pattern. Please read for your own safety.

I was getting ready for work one morning last week. It was around 6am my time. I hear my Facebook IM pop up so I go to my computer, trying to see who was talking to me so early in the morning. It's an old coworker whom I haven't spoken to in about a year.

Molly: Hey you there?
Jane: Hey girl!
Molly: I need help. It's urgent.
Jane: Whats up?
Molly: I'm stuck in England. I got mugged last night. I need money.
Jane: Wow.
Molly: Can you send anything?
Jane: Molly, I don't have a lot of money, and really I have no way of sending it to England...
Molly: So you wouldn't help me out in this situation. Wow.
[Jane signs out]

This shocked me. I knew the situation wasn't true, but I figured either she was testing out her friends (a STUPID thing to do to anyone that early in the morning) or someone had hacked into her account. Later throughout the day, I contacted some old coworkers, John and Ruben, who still work with her just to find out she was sitting at her work desk that day. I just didn't know what to think so I just went ahead and deleted her off my friends list and tried to forget about it.

Just when I thought I'd forget the IM's, I get a text message from one of the coworkers I contacted, Ruben. He tells me this.

Ruben: "so yea my mom just told me that the dentist that she works for was hacked. someone hacked into her email and sent out all these emails. guess what the emails were saying"
Jane: "What?"
Ruben: "I'm in London, England...I need money.." !!!!
Jane: "No freaking way."
Ruben: "this hacker is everywhere apparently!!!!!!"
Jane: "Wow."
Ruben: "my mom says that the dentist believes it's cuz she gave her password out to who she thought was microsoft, so yea be careful who u give ur password to."

He then called me saying that the one of the patients or email contacts emailed whoever the person was back saying "I'm concerned" and whoever had access to the account replied back saying "Thank you for your concern" and gave information to where the money could be wired to.

I'm not sure who all has been affected, or how the hacker gets access to the Facebook accounts or email addresses but I know its happening to others as well. I'm guessing some phishing webpage.

So, please spread the word. This hacker hits you with the worst things to scam someone with in it's conversational-type scam: worry and guilt. Don't fall into the trap. Keep on the lookout and try and keep track of the email or IM conversation sent to you if you ever receive anything like this.

21st Birthday

Well, despite all the hard times I went through on the day before, my birthday turned out to be a blast. I woke up around 9:30am or so and took a shower, went into work for a couple minutes so they could use my bank account to exchange our tip change for bigger bills, and then went to Movie Tavern with my grandma to see Inkheart. I've never been to Movie Tavern so it was really cool. We paid for our movies, grabbed a menu, then went into our theatre. In front of us were buttons we could push to call a server when we were ready to order. I had a Spicy Buffalo Chicken wrap. It wasn't bad at all. The movie was not bad either.

After that, I went back up to work to pick up my tip money (which was low this week but I had the most hours out of everyone) and deposited it into my bank. Sweet action, let me tell you.

Then I went up to school for my business speech class. I actually enjoy that class. It's real interesting and the teacher is actually real laid back and will listen to our input.

Afterwards, I went to Genghis Grill, my favorite restaurant, to meet up with Jennifer. That was a blast. At first when I got there, she hadn't showed up yet so I was just waiting. The waiter came by a couple times, which I thought was odd but I think he was making sure I was okay because I kept staring off into space while I watched The Biggest Loser on the television. Finally Jennifer showed up, grabbed her bowl and said "Lets get in line. I'm freaking hungry." So, we built our bowls and handed them to the "Mongolian chefs" to prepare for us. While we waited, we got the waiter to bring us a couple Hurricanes and a Coors to start us off and chatted with him about what shots we should get. I ended up getting a 4 Horsemen and Jenn got a Royal F***. When he brought them I looked at mine and got a bit freaked out. That thing was DARK! I figured if I was going to get sick after drinking that, I should probably eat my meal first so I don't ruin my appetite. (I love food.)

Well, finally we finished up our food and drank our Hurricanes. Those were okay...

Then we took our shots and oh man... that was something else. It was so strong going down but had a minty aftertaste. It wasn't terrible but it was crazy! When I finished that, I literally went cross eyed, forgot that it was our waiter and not Jenn's boyfriend, and sang Happy Birthday to myself loudly because no one else would.

Afterwards, we drove to Arlington with Jennifer's friend, Emily, and her boyfriend to get something then went to the bowling alley. Emily had so much fun with my random words like "Where is the president?" and laughing at me when I randomly said "I don't know." Bowling was a blast. I literally screamed everytime someone bowled. I ended up winning the first game and didn't get to finish the second game because I had to head home. By that time, my alcohol finally was wearing off.

I got some nice gifts. I got about $50 from my grandma and aunt to go towards my GPS (that I finally bought yesterday!!), of course I got the movie and lunch from my grandma as well, some awesome viewers bought me a domain which was AWESOME, I got about $40 (okay, technically $41. 47...Dane sure is an odd fellow. Haha.) in Amazon gift cards, a Mario hat from Harvey, permanent markers and body scrub from people at work, a $6 Jamba Juice gift card, breakfast from the Assistant manager at my work, $30 to Aeropostale.com from Bobby, and a couple cards. It was so much more than I expected. I really appreciate everyone who made my 21st birthday as awesome as it became.

Short Update

Dad got laid off from his job of 17 years today. Not sure what's going to happen now. He did get severance pay but we're not sure how long that's going to hold. We're going to have to cut back on a lot.

Also, I just found out my great-grandma died about 45 minutes ago. She was put in the hospital for swelling, I believe. She got put on medicine and refused to eat. They were about to take her off the medicine because they said it would make her feel better. At least now she feels no pain.

Small but good news: My partners at work threw me a small birthday party. It made my day. I can't stress enough how much I love this job. I can't see myself working anywhere else.

Procrastination

I've finally come to a decision. I know, took me long enough. I've decided that I will try my HARDEST to stop putting things off until the last minute. I'm an extremely lazy person and get easily distracted. I'm going to make an effort to keep myself on track until I can finally graduate from college. It's going on 3 years since I graduated high school and I don't feel like I'm a lick closer to college graduation.

There might be a change in broadcasting times, which is why I'm informing you of this goal. I'll keep up broadcasting as much as I can but there might be times when I just need to turn the camera off and just focus on what I need to do. I'm taking 3 courses: Macroeconomics, US Government, and Business and Professional Communications.

Anyway, I hate to be a Debbie Downer when it comes to these serious blogs I write. Ironically, I'm putting off Macroeconomics homework that's due tomorrow by writing this blog.

I had my 1 year evaluation at Starbucks not too long ago. There's hope for me this summer to promote to shift supervisor. At the moment, we're not in need of a shift lead which is fine for me. I've got a lot on my plate as it is with school and 35+ hours of barista work a week. Plus, Children's Choir is starting up again today so I've got a shorter break on Sundays.

Well, I'm still doodling my Mario sketches in hopes of making a Mario blanket. It is my New Years Resolution so I have to start it soon!

Okay, time to start my homework.

Woo!

Good morning! Man, I feel well-rested after last night. It's quite a difference from my usual sleeptimes. Hm...

So, here I am "getting ready for church". I feel I've been neglecting my blog. Sorry about that. I just don't think about it until Bobby gets onto me for not checking it out in a month. Haha, I just don't have anything interesting to say sometimes!

Well, the Christmas rush is over now and MAN was it busy. I loved the rush but I'm so glad that the closing shift's duty doesn't revolve around cleaning the all day mess we get. Seriously, the dishes were always stacked and on the floors right after we closed the doors to wash them. I don't know, maybe its just me but washing them was relaxing after working bar.

























We got this awesome new Starbucks card. I had to get one because it just makes so much sense. I'll try and make a vlog about it soon. I should go and register it now.

Oh I'm finally getting closer to registering for classes. It's about time too... Classes start on the 20th and I'm not excited about it. I'm going to try and take Macroeconomics, US Government, and Business and Professional Communications. They don't seem too exciting, but I really need to get out of school and onto this Marketing Degree. After these 3 classes, I'll have 2 more classes left of the first half of my degree, then I can work on the rest. I'm pretty much just going to follow the Marketing program and somehow veer into online marketing. Not sure how that's going to happen though. Now that I think about it, where the heck did I pull online marketing from? Eh. I still want to do it.

Well, I love you and all. Watch this video and you'll see why.
Oh and I used to have a crush on a guy in this video back when I knew him in... middle school? See if you can guess which one he is.