Priceline Roulette

Priceline's map of Seattle, Area 14 demarcating "Downtown-Pike Place."

Dearest Google Researcher,

Here's one of my bad experiences that you can learn from.

Priceline is a hotel discounter.  But not just a simple discounter--you have to bid blindly on a hotel of a certain quality in a defined geographical area.  You do not know the name of the hotel until after you have paid for it (non-refundable).

Summary of my rant: Do NOT bid for a 4* hotel in Downtown - Pike Place Seattle on Priceline.  Do not trust Priceline.

This is my sad story.  Of how I played Priceline Roulette and lost.  I say "sad" because that sounds better than "angry" which is a more accurate description of my state of mind.

I have been using Priceline to buy hotels since 2009, loving the savings and gaining some white hairs in the process.  The first time I used Priceline I was a nervous wreck, sweaty armpits, shaking... and this only being a slight exaggeration of the state I was in.  I mean, there are no refunds!  You don't know which hotel you're getting!  I do use Bidding for Travel, the Bidding Traveler, and Better Bidding to know how to operate the system and to guess what hotel I might be granted.

There have been very good and very bad experiences among my 14 Priceline hotel purchases.

In a few cases I've ended up at a hotel that is currently undergoing renovations.  So they must have resorted to Priceline to continue to move room inventory while the restaurant was being rebuilt, or the entire first floor being renovated.

And once I ended up in the wrong city!  In 2010, I found myself in at Hotel La Jolla by the Shores, 45 minutes away from where I intended to be, near Legoland in Carlsbad.  This was because the La Jolla hotel was in the "North County Coastal" area when I wanted "North San Diego" for the San Diego area.  When I was bidding, I must have been tired and only saw the opening word "North" when selecting the area.  This double name confusion has since been corrected by Priceline as I notice today that the North San Diego area no longer exists.

The other con to using Priceline is that hotels use Priceline as a way of selling off some of their less desirable rooms.  You know, the ones with a view of the parking lot, or facing the loading zones with the trucks going beep beep, or beside the freeway.  You, dear customer, are paying 30% less, so we'll give you a 30% less nice room.

Now for today's rant.

I bid on a 4* hotel in Seattle in the "Downtown - Pike Place" district.  Bam, I got the Silver Cloud Stadium, located at the very southern perimeter of the area "14" shaded above in the photograph.  Technically, it is considered "Downtown" as part of Pioneer Square, but really since it is a 25 minute walk from the centre of the action, I don't know how you can consider this downtown.  When you pay a premium to buy a downtown hotel, you expect to be within walking distance of something.  Shopping.  Restaurants.  Not to be in the middle of an industrial area surrounded by vast tracts of lands in stadiums.  For the Silver Cloud Stadium, you need to take the hotel shuttle to get to the real downtown.  If I wanted to take transportation to go downtown, I would have saved my money and stayed in Bellevue, which is a mere 15 minute drive across the water.

Worse yet, in July 2012, this was a 3.5* hotel.  The last time I checked, this was not a 4* hotel.  I was not expecting to get it.

Just so you know it's not me who is angry to get a non-downtown non-4* hotel for a downtown 4* price, here is a selection of rants by others just in the last few weeks, all on the Priceline site itself, so you know that Priceline knows that people are pissed at this misrepresentation:

October 26, 2013: "Yes. I did not sleep because of the noise in the room the first night due to trains in the area. Location it's horrible.
I am completely shocked that you rate this hotel with 4 stars. The room quality, location regarding noise and I can't believe you called this a downtown hotel. I've used priceline for a long time and due to this experience I will probably not use you again."

October 18, 2013: "Hotel room was NOT of 4 star quality. The grout in the bathroom was disgusting - not clean at all. No upgraded amenities like other 4 stars that I stay at (JW Marriott, Ritz, Kimpton, Starwoods, Hyatt). Satellite TV kept going out. Wifi worked only intermittently. Rooms were small On the plus side - the lobby was clean."

October 18, 2013: "Location was misrepresented by Priceline. I selected Seattle- Pike Street. Seattle Stadium was definitely not Pike Street."

November 1, 2013: "Not up to the Priceline standard for hotels in the 4-star category. Very sketchy part of town surrounds the hotel. Not really a part of the downtown core as represented."

October 26, 2013: "The accommodations were not 4 star quality. Room finishing was old and the space, even in a suite, was very confining. The location may not fit into other categories, but this was not "downtown" - a fairly important misrepresentation from the site."

October 17, 2013: "Rooms seem dated, furnishings seemed old, and it just didn't feel like a 4 star hotel compared to the other 4 stars on the list. Also, unless you're attending an event at Safeco or Century Link it's not a great location for downtown.
Very nice staff, rooms are adequate, but feel dated. Location is not where you expect to end up when selecting a downtown option with Priceline."

October 16, 2013: "I do not consider this the downtown area of Seattle."

October 15, 2013: "This hotel is 3-3.5 stars at best. It is in a poor location, except for the sporting stadiums, rooms are small, lobby and lounge area very mediocre. Probably would not stay at this hotel for this price."

October 15, 2013: "I did not like that Priceline has included the Seattle Stadium area in the "Downtown" selection. It is not in the downtown shopping area.
The hotel was fine. Clean and nice staff. Just not downtown Seattle. Will no longer recommend Priceline to my friends as I have done for several years. "

October 10, 2013: "They charged for parking. $25/night.
Hotel in SODO district. Not downtown. A bit misleading as Priceline needs a SODO location in addition to downtown."

October 10, 2013: "It was supposedly "downtown", Pike Street area. It was NOT, no matter how you try to spin it. For this reason, I won't be using the Priceline service in the future. It can't be trusted."

October 3, 2013: "The location said it was pike place. It was not but that would be error on priceline I guess not the hotel. They did have free shuttle to make up for that mistake."
September 30, 2013: "High parking costs, just did not feel like a 4 star hotel.
It was clean and nice but not a 4 star hotel. More like a 3 star. Parking was unreasonably high priced at $25 a day."

September 30, 2013: "This is NOT a 4 Star Hotel. It was 3-3.5. I travel quite a bit and have stayed at 4 star hotels recently in Seattle (Grand Hyatt) and there is no comparison. Nice Hotel, just not 4 star."

September 29, 2013: "Beware when booking! Priceline identifies the hotel as Downtown but it is NOT. At least a mile walk to anything worth seeing. The hotel is disappointing for four stars. Loud refrigerator, loud Mechanical units. Free shuttle has limited usefulness.
The location is terrible unless you are going to a sports events, and is of poor quality for a 4-star hotel."

Priceline executives: are you listening? Do something about this.

As for myself, I am going to avoid using Priceline.  People are frightened enough that they don't want to use Priceline.  This kind of unwanted surprise isn't helping things any.

You know, I warned you Priceline that if you were not going to listen to me that I would write in my blog about it. This has been going on for more than a year and you have heard from many of us. Stop cheating us.

Sunscreen Smackdown

I hate sunscreens. My eldest hates it so much that sometimes she would rather stay home than apply it.  She would rather wear a long sleeve shirt and long pants in the hot sun than wear sunblock.  If you decide to go this route, I can recommend the White Sierra Gobi SPF 30 shirt to do the trick, as it is loose fitting, wicking, and dries quickly, rather than the typical rash guard shirts.  My kids love theirs.

So which is the best sunscreen? Four criteria here:

1. Best sun protection; 
2. Safe ingredients;
3. Best feeling on the skin; and
4. Best value

Some day I'll make up a table and put it all together for you, to figure out which sunscreen is the best overall, but today is not that day.  This post has been sitting in my drafts folder for three months and I've realized now that I'm never going to get around to it.  If you manage to create a table with the sunscreen names, protection factor, price, EWG rating, and Amazon rating (for how consumers like how it feels on the skin), please send the link to me!  The fact that there are a gazillion different types of sunscreens, and multiples from the same manufacturer, leads to a Goliath worthy task.

Now, I'm thinking this is the Impossible Dream, getting a sunscreen which rates well for all of the four criteria.  So it is up to you which factors are the most important and the weighting you give to them to determine the overall winner.

Here is a discussion of the four criteria and what I've come up with after some obsessive research.

Best Protection from UVA and UVB

For best sun protection, I turn to Consumer Reports. Unfortunately, the SPF does not tell you how well protected you are from UVA and UVB rays. "Most of the sunscreens we tested provided less protection than the SPF listed on the container," Sue Booth of Consumer Reports said.

Sky-high SPF numbers are no measure of product effectiveness. A sunscreen’s sun protection factor, or SPF, measures its ability to screen skin burning UV rays, primarily UVB rays. The SPF value does not reflect the product’s ability to filter out UVA rays that, according to a growing body of evidence, cause skin damage, immune suppression and possibly melanoma. Studies show that high-SPF users are exposed to as many or more ultraviolet rays than those who use lower-SPF products. Experts believe that people get a false sense of security from those big numbers, don’t apply enough sunscreen, wait too long before reapplying and spend too much time in bright sun. 

About 1 in 7 beach and sport sunscreens is labeled with SPF values greater than 50+. The FDA has proposed to limit SPF claims to 50+ but has not issued a regulation to that end. European manufacturers are bound by a European Union rule that caps SPF claims at 50+.

If you just want the best SPF sun protection for value, buy the EQ Sport SPF 60 sunscreen from Walmart. At $7 for 237 mL, it's a steal. I am not recommending any spray on sunscreens because they are still researching the danger of that application method, given that the fumes may be inhaled.

Here are the top four according to Consumer Reports in 2010:

• Up & Up Sport Continuous SPF 30, by Target. It is administered by spray and costs $0.88 per ounce.
• Walgreens Sport Continuous SPF 50. Also a spray. Cost, $1.33 per ounce.
• Banana Boat Sport Performance Continuous SPF 30. Spray. Cost, $1.60 per ounce.
• Aveeno Continuous Protection SPF 50. Spray. Cost, $2 an ounce.

Ranking below those are:

• Coppertone UltraGuard Continuous 70+ SPF, costing $1.62 per ounce. Spray.
• No-Ad with Aloe and Vitamin, 45 SPF scale, costing $0.59 per ounce. Lotion.
• Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Body Mist with Helioplex, 45 SPF, costing $1.90 per ounce. Spray.
• Badger, 30 SPF, costing $4.83 per ounce. Lotion.
• La Roche-Posay Anthelios 40 with Mexoryl SX, 40 SPF, costing $18.82 per ounce. Cream.
• Avon Skin-So-Soft Bug Guard Plus IR3535 Expedition, 30 SPF, costing $3.50 per ounce. Pump spray.
• Burt’s Bees Chemical-Free with Hemp Seed Oil, 30 SPF, costing $4 per ounce. Lotion.

Safest Ingredient Sunscreen

For safe ingredients, I turn to Environmental Working Group's extensive ratings. Here is where I save you the work. I've cross referenced the Consumer Reports list with the EWG ratings for you.

0-2: Low Hazard
3-6: Moderate Hazard
7-10: High Hazard

Here they are ranked from best to worst. Click on the rating number to see the full description of the hazards.

For the Consumer Reports top rated sunscreens:

• Up & Up Sport Continuous SPF 30, by Target. It is administered by spray and costs $0.88 per ounce. 7
• Walgreens Sport Continuous SPF 50. Also a spray. Cost, $1.33 per ounce. 7 for the 15 SPF spray version.
• Banana Boat Sport Performance Continuous SPF 30. Spray. Cost, $1.60 per ounce. 7.
• Aveeno Continuous Protection SPF 50. Spray. Cost, $2 an ounce. 7

For the next to top rated sunscreens:

• Coppertone UltraGuard Continuous rated a 70+ in SPF, costing $1.62 per ounce. Spray. 7.
• No-Ad with Aloe and Vitamin rated 45 on the SPF scale, costing $0.59 per ounce. Lotion. 7
• Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Body Mist with Helioplex had a 45 SPF, costing $1.90 per ounce. Spray.
• Badger scored a PDF of 30, costing $4.83 per ounce. Lotion. 7.
• La Roche-Posay Anthelios 40 with Mexoryl SX, scored a 40 SPF, costing $18.82 per ounce. Cream. 2.
• Avon Skin-So-Soft Bug Guard Plus IR3535 Expedition scores a SPF of 30, costing $3.50 per ounce. Pump spray. No EWG data available.
• Burt’s Bees Chemical-Free with Hemp Seed Oil got a 30 SPF, costing $4 per ounce. Lotion. No EWG data available, but the Baby Bee Sunscreen Stick has a rating of 1.

Note that EWG has its own measurement of UVA and UVB protection, and the list appears to be kept up to date.

Best Feeling Sunscreen

I hate the feeling of greasiness and my skin breaking out, so I turned to the recommendations given by Well and Good NYC. Most of the sunscreens on the list were prohibitively expensive. The least expensive one was by Goddess Garden, Facial Sunscreen SPF 30, at $18 for 3.4 ounces.

The highest ratings on Amazon for natural sunscreens were for:

1. Burnout Kids Physical Sunscreen SPF 30, $5.29.
2. Sprunk-Jansen ThinkBaby Sunscreen SPF 50+, $4.80.
3. Vanicream Sunscreen for Sensitive Skin, $2.80.  4.5*, EWG 2
4. ThinkSport Kid Safe Sunscreen Thinkbaby Livestrong SPF 50+, $5.25.  5* 
5. Thinksport Livestrong Sunscreen SPF 50+, Water Resistant, $3.67.  4.5*, EWG 1
6. Seventh Generation Baby Sunscreen SPF 30, $6.53. 4.5*
7. Banana Boat Natural Reflect Sunscreen Lotion SPF 50, $2.25, 4.5*, EWG 3
8. Adorable Baby SPF 30+ Sunscreen Non-Nano Zinc Oxide UVA/UVB, $5.11, 4.5*
9. Blue Lizard Blue Lizard Australian Sensitive Sunscreen Spf 30 Plus, $4.38, 4*
10. All Terrain KidSport SPF30 Oxybenzone Disney Phineas and Ferb Free Natural Sunscreen, $3.53, 4*, EWG 2

Best Value Natural Sunscreen

The final consideration is cost. Most experts recommend TWO shot glasses of sunscreen, or around two ounces. Given that many of the sunscreens come in 3-4 ounce containers, it seems they would be finished in only two uses!!!

Not wanting to look up the cost of every single sunscreen listed as a top sunscreen by EWG, I took this shortcut by jumping off the research done by The Daily Green for winners on the EWG list.

The Daily Green listed the 21 Most Affordable Natural Sunscreens, listed in order of cost. Not all of these sunscreens are available in Canada. Cost is listed "per ounce."  My own additions to the list are in bold:

1. MexiTan and Tropical Sands Sunscreens, $2.19.
2. Purple Prairie SunStuff Natural Sunscreen, $2.31.
3. Nature's Gate Mineral Sportblock, $2.34.
4. Solbar Zinc Sun Protection Cream, $2.46.
5. Alba Botanica Mineral Sunscreen, $2.50.
6. Caribbean Solutions SolGuard Biodegradable Sunscreen, $2.67.
7. Jason Mineral Sunblock, $2.87.
8. Vanicream Sunscreen for Sensitive Skin, $2.80.
9. Loving Naturals Sunscreen, $2.94.
10. Goddess Garden Natural Sunscreen, $3.00
11. Earth's Best Mineral Sunblock, $3.11.
12. Aubrey Organics Natural Sun Saving Face Sunscreen, $3.46.
13. All-Terrain Aquasport Sunscreen, $3.54.
14. MelanSol Natural Sunscreen, $3.99.
15. Beyond Coastal Natural Sunscreen, $4.00.
16. Episencial Sunny Sunscreen, $4.25.
17. Badger All Natural Sunscreen, $4.69.
18. Sprunk-Jansen ThinkBaby Sunscreen SPF 50+, $4.80.
19. Blue Lizard Australian Sunscreen, $4.96.
20. Green Beaver Non-Whitening Fragrance Free Sunscreen SPF 30, $5.26.
21. Burnout Kids Physical Sunscreen SPF 30, $5.29.
22. Kabana Green Screen Natural Sunscreen, $5.95.
23. True Natural Cosmetics All Natural Sunscreen, $6.00.
24. Climb On! Mineral Sunblock, $6.00.

The Best Sweetener: Erythritol

Edit: August 8, 2024. Erythritol is linked to blood clotting and a risk of heart disease. https://www.cnn.com/2024/08/08/health/erythritol-blood-clotting-wellness/index.html

Edit: February 27, 2023! Erythritol can be harmful! It is linked to heart attacks and strokes! https://www.cnn.com/2023/02/27/health/zero-calorie-sweetener-heart-attack-stroke-wellness/index.html

Original article:

I thought all low calorie sweeteners were harmful until I found this.

• No adverse effects associated with other low and non-caloric natural and artificial sweeteners
• May have antioxidant potential
• Has 60-80% the sweetness of sugar
• Can be used in baking
• Safe for diabetics

Buy the powder since the granular form needs to be dissolved in liquid otherwise it remains granular.  It is $9 a pound for powder in the US, and in Canada ranging from $8/lb (5 lb bag includes $10 shipping) (but may crystallize in liquids after a time), $12 (free shipping), or $19 per pound (free shipping) in Canada.

If using it in baking, it is a little tricky.  It really really wants to re-crystallize.  Be careful when putting it in things that are dry, like cookies and brownies, as it will re-crystallize as it cools.  You can prevent this effect by using it in a combination of 1:8 of Thick-it-up Low Carb Thickener to erythritol (2 T per cup) for powdered form and 4 T/cup for granular form.

For higher liquid products, like icing and pies, you should be okay, but you can also grind it into a powder if it has re-crystallized in storage or if you have the granular form.

It leaves a cooling/minty effect in your mouth in some cases.  Some bakers like the crunch from the re-crystallization in their products.

On a cautionary note...

Erthryitol was rejected by the EFSA in March 2013 as an additive to soft drinks because for children aged 3-9 years old (22 kg on average), drinking 650 mL of the soft drink had a laxative effect.  I don't know what kind of parent would let their sub-10 year old drink the equivalent of two cans of pop a day, but I'm sure they exist.

Here is a list of harmful sweeteners:

acesulfame-K (Sweet One) - DNA damage

aspartame (Nutrasweet, Equal) - hypertension

cyclamate (Sugar Twin) - banned 39 years ago but still sold in Canada

saccharin (Sweet'N'Low) - bladder cancer

sucralose (Splenda) - migraine trigger

sorbitol, xylitol - (Extra, Eclipse, Orbit...) - laxative

We don't know whether stevia is safe.  Yet.  I bought stevia leaf powder, and it was horrible to use.  It had a distinctive leafy green taste, and a terrible aftertaste.  Not the kind of stuff I want to put in my baking or tea.

Bringing A New Kitten Home

Here's a journal of our first days with the kittens, to be updated as we go along, so you know what to expect.  Each kitten is different, and here is our story.

The kittens are 8 weeks old (and three days) and were found in an abandoned house with their mother, aunt, and grandmother.  All three adult cats had kittens at the same time... The kittens' mother was only one year old when she gave birth.  Thus the importance of spaying your cat by five months old.  The kittens are two sisters in a family of five: four sisters and a brother.  All were black with random white hairs, except the one with Siamese markings, pictured above.  We had wanted only one kitten, but ended up with two when we decided that she would be lonely.

Day 1

5:30 pm.  We were glad of our decision already by the time we'd put both cats into the carrier for the 30 minute ride home in rush hour traffic.  The kittens huddled together, quietly, nervously quivering.

6:00 pm.  Arrival home, both kittens huddled in carrier, with door left open.  We put the kittens in the bathroom so they would not be overwhelmed by the large wide open spaces of the house.

7:30 pm.  White comes out of carrier.

8:00 pm.  White starts playing with kids.

9:00 pm.  Feeding First Mate Chicken Cat Food mixed with warm water.  Black comes out and eats like she was starved.  White does not eat and goes to sleep.

Day 2

7:00 am.  My youngest daughter wakes up the kittens by checking in on them.  They were silent all night.

8:00 am.  Breakfast.  Both eat, White quite heartily.  White keeps pausing to paw the ground and she looks nervous and jumpy, exploring all over.  I was concerned that she was looking for a place to pee...

12:00 pm.  Lunch.  Both eat.  Then nap.

3:00 pm.  Black pees for the first time in the litter, after I send a frantic email to the shelter concerned that they haven't peed for nearly 24 hours.  White pees seconds after.  Black poos minutes after.

4:15 pm.  Dinner.  Black eats well, White eat some then starts pawing the ground.

4:45 pm.  White pees.

5:00 pm.  First purr.  White approaching us and wanting some loving.  We cough up some love, and she purrs.

Day 8

The kittens are purr machines.  You touch them, and that is the "on" switch for the purr machine.  My supplies finally arrived, and they are loving the Kong Zoom Groom, which is an unconventional hair brush that is based on static electricity.  It's a big gigantic for their tiny bodies, though.

Yesterday was the first time that the kittens left the bathroom they've been living in, to explore any distance from the bathroom.  One of the kittens made it almost all the way down the stairs.  She climbed out onto a wardrobe, the top of which is accessible from the stair railing, and she slipped and hung onto the edge with her front paws, seven feet off the ground.  Thank goodness my husband got to her in time and scooped her to safety.  He felt like a hero.

The door was open all day yesterday, but the kittens were too frightened to come out.

We've had a number of strangers come to visit and handle them, to get them better socialized.

The sound of kitten feet galloping through the upstairs hallway is pretty hilarious.

The kittens like hanging out in the litter box, and will sleep in it as well.  I guess I keep it pretty clean.

Day 12-13, June 30

The cats are out of the bag!  They now hang out in the upstairs hallway, and sometimes venture down the stairs.  The black one is the leader.  Tonight both of them were cruising the living room and they protested when we closed the door on them in the bathroom at 9:15 pm for the night.

Their purring ability has further developed so that now, they begin purring within seconds of touch.  Every morning when you open the door, they are already purring, probably in anticipation of their
food.

Day 22, July 9

First potty accident.  Black sniffed around one of the kids' paintings and decided it was an awesome place to let her bladder go.  No punishment here, we just cleaned it up with vinegar.  She's the equivalent of a two year old human at this point.

Day 24, July 11

I started the raw food diet today.  Purchased beef and chicken drumettes from Safeway, sliced them up into chunks and strips, and fed them.  Black was quite wary, but White attacked the meat.  Following White's cue, Black eventually loved eating the raw meat.

So, no need to slowly introduce them to raw meat.  They're naturals.

They are now confidently roaming around the main floor, sleeping in the open and also behind the TV, which is turned off most of the time.

Clipped their nails for the third time today, just a touch up.  Some of the nails, maybe 2/3 of them on White were sharp.  For Black, only 1/3 were sharp and needed trimming.  I used a human nail clipper while waiting for my father to give me the proper cat claw clipper that I left behind from my previous cats.  I need to get them used to being handled and having their nails cut.

Day 28, July 15 12 weeks old

The kittens are two days away from being 12 weeks old.  So I took them into the vet today for their first shots.  After a checkup and weigh in (Black is now 1.3 kg and White is 960 g), it was time for the dreaded shots-- The vet had one vial of the yellow liquid, and he gave it to them subcutaneously, lifting up the skin at the scruff of the neck and injecting there.  The kittens made no comment, so it must have been relatively painless.

In other news, the cat tree finally came today.

August 13,  almost 4 months old

Yesterday for the first time, the Black jumped up onto my lap for affection, kneaded me, and slept there.  I never would have thought she would be a lap cat.  The White is finally allowing me to stroke her without running away (sometimes).  Both of them are so good natured that they don't scratch or bite when handled by small children.

Both are using the cat tree for some of their naps.

I started feeding my homemade raw food around July 17, and both cats loved it.  Now, a month later, both will still eat it, but the Black shows a preference for canned First Mate and the White prefers the raw food.  So I serve out a scoop of each at meal times.

Cats and Dogs Are Not Equal When It Comes to Food

Did you notice that cat food is more expensive than dog food?

The foster for my adopted kittens told me that the food she is feeding the cats is dog food, but it is the same as cat food.  I was skeptical, because I know that cats and dogs have different dietary requirements.  For one, cats don't and shouldn't eat grains and vegetables.  Cats need taurine.

Sure enough, the labels were exactly the same, ingredients and percentages.  For the First Mate brand, this was true.  The chicken, turkey, and salmon dog food cans are 12 ounces, for $3.  The "cat food" can of 5.5 ounces is $2.  So for "dog food" you are paying 25 cents per ounce, and for "cat food" you pay 36 cents per ounce.  If you have two cats, it really makes sense as you would be using food at twice the rate and could handle the 12 ounce size.  My nine week old kittens are eating around 6-7 ounces of food a day, between them.

Of course this is not true for all dog foods, that they can be fed to cats.

The only criticism I have of the First Mate brand is the potato content, which the sales rep guesstimated at 2%.  He said they needed to replace the carageenan and guar gum with a binder and potatoes fit the bill.

So go ahead and save yourself some cash.  Buy some dog food for your cat.

Adopting a Cat

Aren't they adorable?  These the kittens that we will be picking up in a week's time, as soon as they are old enough to leave the mother's care.

So you've decided to get a cat.  Here's the consumer's guide to acquiring and outfitting your home for a cat.

Fresh Cats Here!  Get Your Fresh Cats Here!

There are many folks selling kittens on Kijiji for amounts varying from free (rarely) to $1000.  Generally they seem to be around $100-150 for mixed breed cats.  Older cats are free, or if purebred, can still be sold for a pretty penny.  I did not want to pay someone in Surrey/Langley, where the majority of kittens and cats are for sale, to run a kitten mill.  It was tempting, however, because we were hoping for a specific type of cat that would be less allergenic, for the sake of guests and possibly immediate family.

In fact, one person seemed to have endless litters of Siamese-looking kittens for a special price (If you pick up, TODAY ONLY!) of $100, and a regular price of $150.  I never got to speak to a human being because "she" preferred to communicate by email and text only, although I asked many times to telephone her.  Run, don't walk away from this situation!

Craigslist had a much more limited selection of cats for sale.

Of course, I hope that you do decide to get your cat from a shelter.  Kitten mills are despicable "for profit" operations that sometimes breed unhealthy kittens for a buck.  There are far too many cats without a home, and no need to encourage non-licensed breeders to continue.

We'd heard of the SPCA.  What we didn't know is that there are many other non-profit no kill shelters for cats.  Here are just some of them:

• Vancouver Orphan Kitten Rescue Association (VOKRA)
• Katie's Place (Maple Ridge)
• Richmond Cat Sanctuary
• Meow-Aid
• HomeFinders Animal Rescue Society
• SARA (Surrey)

If you want a central place to cover these shelters, you can go to Pet Finder and do a search, by location, gender, breed... Pretty nifty!

In the end, we went with the shelter we were comfortable with.  The adoption fee of $175 covers a checkup at the vet, flea treatment and deworming, spay/neuter, first vaccine, and a tattoo.  We must promise to keep the cat indoors and to have her/him spayed/neutered at five months of age.

Feeding

I've previously owned three cats, and all eventually developed problems with urination.  Turns out that it was likely due to their diet, of wet food and dry food.  Cats originate from the desert, and get their water from prey, and as such do not have a good sense of thirst, and you cannot trust them to drink enough water.  Not having enough water, and poor quality food, leads to problems with urination as crystals may form in their urinary tracts.  They end up peeing outside the litter box because they think it might hurt less to pee somewhere else.

This time I will be feeding my orphan cats wet food in cans, or raw food.  There is already a large industry of locally available raw food, available frozen at pet food stores.  You will not find healthy food for your cats at your local grocery.  Most wet foods contain grains, which they do not need as carnivores, and carageenan, which is a cancer causing additive.  You can read more detail about my conclusions here.

In fact, you will find very few canned options without grains and carageenan in specialty pet food stores as well.  Although some are "grain free", the second ingredient below meat is... potatoes.  While potato is not a grain, it is a carbohydrate, which can lead to an overweight cat.   Here is a list of local pricing, so you have an idea of how much different options cost.  The reason why I have focussed on Wellness and First Mate is that these are brands suggested by the adoption agency.  I will not be using these brands myself later as Wellness contains carageenan and First Mate has potatoes!  I'll be phasing it out and replacing with the food of my choice, which will likely be raw foods from Club Canine.

I would really like to make First Mate my food of choice, particularly because it is based on North Vancouver.  Why is it more expensive than similar quality companies in the U.S. like Great Life or Hound and Gatos?  Perhaps meat is cheaper there?  And what's with the potatoes?

If brave enough, I might make my own food.  It is a heckuvalot cheaper that way.  I'll list in order of price.

• Club Canine, cat food raw chicken with bone, 200g x 10 for $15.05.  $0.215/oz
• Bosley, canned Wellness Chicken, 12 x 12.5 oz for $38.17.  0.25/oz
• wholepetsholistic.com, canned Hound and Gatos homestyle chicken, case of 24 x 5.5 oz (includes discount and shipping charge),  0.26/oz
• Simply Natural Kerrisdale, canned Wellness Chicken, 354 g for $3.35, 0.27/oz
• Petflow, canned Great Life Essentials Chicken, 24 x 5.5 ounce for $36, $0.27/oz
• Bosley, canned First Mate Chicken, 5.5 oz for $1.99, 0.36/oz
• Tisol, canned First Mate Chicken, 5.5 oz for $1.99, 0.36/oz
• Pet Food N More, canned First Mate Chicken, $1.99 for 156 g = $0.36/oz,  $46.99 for case.
• Bosley, canned Weruva Lickin' Chicken 5.5 oz for $1.99 = $0.36/oz or 24 for $50.81=0.38/oz
• Simply Natural Kerrisdale, canned Wellness Chicken, 155 g for $2.23, 0.40/oz
• Bosley, raw Chicken, 4 oz for $1.99.    0.50/oz
• www.petonly.ca, canned Tiki Cat Koolina Luau or Puka Puka Luau (Chicken), 12 x 2.8 oz for $18, 0.54/oz
• Simply Natural Kerrisdale, raw Chicken 4 oz for $2.82.  0.70/oz
• Super Pet, Richmond, canned Merrick, Addiction, Before Grain, Science Diet (unwilling to provide prices over the phone)

If you want to make your own food, you can buy a Tasin TS-108 Meat Grinder for around $150.  This will pay itself off within a year, if you're planning to go the raw food route.

Equipment

Here is a list of what I bought, all of which I thoroughly researched for best prices and best reviews:

• Tenth Life Stretch Collar, $7 at Bosley's (as recommended by VOKRA)
• Petmate 21231 Two Door Top Load 24 inch Pet Kennel, $38 plus tax = $42, at amazon.ca: best to have a top loader for a reluctant cat
• Nature's Miracle Scoop and Caddy, $6.77 at amazon.ca* and following two items total $29.54
• Easy Walk Cat Harness and Bungee Leash, $10.91 at amazon.ca (for taking the cat on walks)
• Flexi Cat Retractable Cord Leash, 10 feet, $8.70 at amazon.ca

You also need to buy:

• Litter pan: sifting is better, for easier mess cleanup.  I have a litter box that I put together myself: the sifting top was to be thrown out by the shelter.  They said that the sifting boxes are useless, so they let me take it home, at least the top half of it.  I fit it into the bottom plastic pan, which was used 15 years ago for another cat's litter.  It works well with the pine pellets, so you stir the pellets around and the sawdust falls through the grid to the pan below, and the pellets are kept clean.  Awesome.
• Litter: Clumping litters are no longer recommended as they have been found to clog your cat's internal plumbing.  An environmentally and health safe alternative is wood pellets, called stove pellets.  The same thing you use to heat your wood burning stove is what your kitty will poop and pee on.  It is available at Rona, $5 for 18 kg (Firemaster), at Canadian  Tire for $5.50 (Firemaster), and perhaps Lowe's (item 87059) when it's in stock, and possibly Home Hardware for $6.29 if it's ever in stock.  You see, I called all of these stores, and while they appear to be selling them online, the actual stores don't have the product.  Could be a seasonal thing.  Home Depot used to carry them but alas, no more.  Wood pellets are also used for horse bedding, so you can check horse suppliers, like Vanderveen Hay Sales in Surrey if that happens to be close to you.  The price is $4.99 for 40 lb bags of Eagle Brand, and $4.75/bag for a skid of 50!
• Grooming brush/rake
• Nail clipper: try to buy one that won't crush the nail--this one is good:  the Ultimate Touch Cat Claw Clipper for $5.50.
• Scratching post preferably with a perch on top

And you know, silly person that I am, I also looked into toilet training cats, for later.  There are three possible alternatives:  Citty Kitty, Litter Kwitter, and... a tin foil roasting pan with duct tape.  You can guess which system is the least expensive.  The cat should be at least three months old.  So we'll re-visit this in the future.

I had a difficult time choosing grooming equipment.  In the end I chose the Zoom Groom, because it's easier for the kids to use without hurting the cat.  Here are the top three recommended alternatives for my medium haired cat, with the suggestion that you may need more than one:

• Kong Zoom Groom, an innovative "brush" not made of plastic or metal, but of a rubber-like tactile substance that creates static to attract hair, and acts as a massager, available at www.well.ca for $10 and Bosleys for $11.  Main criticisms are the static charge it creates, shocking the cat in the dry air of winter (wet it down), not as effective as the furminator for removing hair, and that some cats do not like it (minority).
• Furminator (new version) Deshedder, large or small for long haired cats, available on eBay for $30 (includes shipping), Petsmart for $42, or Bosleys for way too much--there are the original and improved versions of this, so watch out which version you buy because the new one with the fur ejector is 30% more expensive.  This is a blade embedded in a comb which supposedly pulls out the fur in the undercoat like nobody's business.  The main criticisms are that the fur flies all over the place, some cats don't like it, and you can accidentally cut the fur instead of pulling it out.  
• Safari Slicker Brush with Ejector for cats, $8 at petland.ca, $20 includes shipping at amazon.ca, $29 at ebay.ca.

Okay, and now we're into the "you really don't need this, but if you love gadgets then..." section.

Here is what else I bought:

• Pioneer Pet Big Max Ceramic Drinking Fountain, $48.82 at amazon.com.  I was making a trip down to the border anyway to pick up hiking purchases, so I used the American Amazon site.  The thing that stood out to be from the customer reviews was this: "easy to clean."  I thought about buying the Drinkwell 360 Fountain from costco.ca for $72 and buy the Forever Filter (re-usable carbon filter) but decided against it since the inner workings are plastic and it is more difficult to clean.  I just hope to golly that it doesn't break down, as so many reviewers claimed.  But it seems that the pumps really didn't stop working, that they just needed to be cleaned properly.

If you so much cash you don't know what to do with yourself:

• The "Catsomat" is a new automatic feeder that works with wet food.  It not only keeps your food cold, but also heats it before serving!!!!  You can put in 7 or 10 compartments.  It is a slick German invention, for the cool price of... wait for it... $547 CAD, plus tax... I didn't even bother checking the shipping cost.  I would think the Catsomat would look good in a kitchen with your Subzero Fridge and your solid gold taps (but solid gold would probably be too soft... so may be a gold metal mix).

ID Tags

Even if yours is an indoor cat, you should have an ID tag around the collar.  If your cat wanders away or escapes as you're transporting her/him, the ID tag helps you get her/him back.  After I'd spent a long time finding engraved ID tags at stores like Petsmart or cute high quality Red Dingo tags at homesalive.ca, I found out about free tags you can get from:

• Hartz Pet ID Tag Offer:  Free for US and Canada, and pay $3.25 for shipping.
• Humane Society of Canada:  Free with registration of your pet.  Tag only says "Humane Society of Canada" and gives a telephone number and toll-free number.  Your pet's information is kept in perpetuity and you call them to make changes to your address or other details.  I like this because you have less work if you move, and your personal information is not on your pet's tag.

Another interesting alternative is the GPS trackable tag from pethub.com.  It allows smartphones to scan the tag and get your information.  The cost ranges from $13 to $40.  I don't know why I would need to pay that kind of money for a high tech tag when a simple ID tag with a phone number provides the same result.

In fact, today we found a stray dog wandering around the park near my home.  The dog had a city license tag around its neck with the city's telephone number and its ID number.  We simply called the city and less than an hour later, a truck picked up the dog and returned her to her owner. 

Pet Insurance

The shelter recommended that I buy pet insurance at the first vet visit, specifically Petsecure.  While reading a cat forum, another poster alerted me to this article.  In a nutshell, don't bother buying pet insurance because it is useless.  The insurers will find reasons to deny coverage, or the coverage will be inadequate and less than the premiums you put in.

Best course of action is to set aside some money yourself as if you were paying the premiums, so $30-50 a month, to pay for future expenses.  The insurer bases premiums on statistics, so if the insurer suggests these amounts, then likely it will cover any eventuality on the balance of probabilities.

Lava Tours in Volcano National Park

Haven't you always wanted to poke a stick into red hot lava? This is a rewarding but very challenging activity.  At times I was wondering whether I was an unfit parent, taking my kids on this adventure, but for our family, it was an acceptable risk.

Access to live lava flows at Hawaii's Volcano National Park is by three methods:

1. Helicopter;
2. Hike; and
3. Boat tour

With #1 and #3 you don't get a chance to get up close and personal. So here's a guide to hiking in the park.

There are two options for seeing the lava. Within the park, take Chain of Craters Road to the end and hike from there. Outside the park, you drive to Kalapana and take a guided tour there. The path to the lava flows may run over private land, so you are required to get permission to hike.

Presently the surface lava flows are very close to the ocean entry point for the lava.  From Volcano National Park, it is currently an 8-10 hour hike, and from Kalapana, it is a 4-5 hour hike.

Here is a rough guide to the many companies and individuals offering a lava hike:

Lava Bed Tours

David Ewing used to run a Bed and Breakfast located right on the lava flows. He offers tours every evening at 4 pm for $100 per person (pp), less for larger groups.

Kalapana Cultural Tours

This is run by native Hawaiians and includes a cultural aspect to each tour. $150 for private tours. $100 for scheduled group tours at 8 am, 3:30 pm, 4:30 pm, and 5:30 pm. Minimum age is 10 years old.

There have been complaints by many that this company has guides who are territorial and abusive to hikers who attempt the hike without a guide. Here are some examples:

From Yelp: "I have a friend who was on the tour when the tour guide lost it! She isn't on Yelp but since she shared with me and I am, I thought it would be best to pass this info on to unsuspecting visitors, especially those who want to use this tour company!

A person with Kalapana Cultural Tours threatened every person and group walking to the end of the road while she was there! He screamed, using foul language and insults. He even said he would beat them all up! They told him that they wouldn't go off the old highway, but he told them again that he would beat them if they went anyway!. They said no, thanks to the tour guide, but called the police. He left before they got there. She said that they did give the police his name." This account pretty much echoes the advice given by the authors of Hawaii the Big Island Revealed on their update to their latest edition:

"Lava Flow Viewing Access Update: The lava is sporadically flowing a couple of miles from the end of the county road on Hwy 130, but things can get complicated. Although the old state highway still exists under the lava flow (and is therefore state land), County Civil Defense dissuades hikers from proceeding when they start duty around 4 p.m., and they absolutely have that authority. Visitors arriving before then might encounter a couple of private tour companies that will walk you a couple of miles out to the flow for around $150 per person. When I politely declined their services, one company rep from Poke-a-Stick Tours incorrectly told me there were state officers “patrolling the lava flows and arresting viewers who weren’t with paid guides.” Another person representing Kalapana Cultural Tours threatened every person and group walking to the end of the road while we were there, screaming obscenities and insults to all who approached. In our case, he said he would beat us all up and singled out my 4-foot 11-inch daughter-in-law saying, “You shut your mouth. I slap girls, too!” We explained that with GPS we wouldn’t be straying from the old Hwy under the lava and would not trespass onto private property, which the gentleman correctly indicated the lava might be flowing onto. But we were told that the state had “stolen all the land” under the highway anyway and that the same beating would take place if we proceeded. We declined the tour and called the police, then watched as others got the same threats before the police arrived, by which time the man (whose name we gave to the police) had left. My point is you may encounter unauthorized “enforcers” at the end of the government road on Hwy 130, and regardless of your feelings, rights or pride, you should turn away if you feel unwelcome. The lava might indeed be flowing onto private property and you do not have a right to trespass onto it. If you want to pay a guide, that’s your decision. Personally, we’ll take a pass."

And another comment from Yelp: "Seeing the lava was awesome but the guide's meltdown was unnecessary. Initially the guides had some interesting insights into the history and flora of the area. Viewing the lava was spectacular. Things went dramatically down hill from there. We spent an extra forty five minutes at the lava while our guide screamed, cursed, threatened violence, and verbally abused tourists who wondered onto the lava unguided. Unprofessional, untrained, and out of control guides with no wilderness first responder training for a hundred dollars a head and the threat of violence if you go out unguided is not the aloha spirit that usually marks the big island. So the the tour part was lame but seeing the lava was amazing."

Poke a Stick Guided Lava Tours

The name says it all! The goal is to have you poke the provided walking stick into the lava. Careful you don't burn off too much or that walking stick will be useless for the journey back! 7:30 am and 4:00 pm departures. Guide Cheryl purchased a lava covered property in 1985 and built a B&B on it, calling it the Kalapana Lava Refuge. You park your car on their private property to start your hike. Cost is $100 cash, with a 10% discount for a group of 4 or 15% for a group of 6.

Kalapana Lava Boat

$125. Must be 6 years of age or older. Six guests per guide. 5:30 am and 3:30 pm. 4-6 hours round trip.

Volcano Discovery

Supposedly the best, and most expensive.

The Lava Proximity Hike 

HIKE as close as safely possible, when it's possible! At present, this hike requires 7mi / 12km / 4-5 hrs walk at sea-level over uneven terrain crossing recent & historic lava flows and islands of native vegetation, allowing ~2 hrs at the site of activity on an 8-hr tour leaving from Hilo or Volcano (or 6-hr meeting in Kalapana).

Price from $175 per person.
Included:

• All transportation on the Big Island in private 4WD vehicle
• Expert local guide with presentations on eruption history
• Legal access over private land with contribution to local community
• Fresh local fruits, local snacks and juices en route

6+ Hours.

Lava Ocean Tours

Hawaii lava hikes depart daily at 4AM, 10AM, 3:30PM 4:30PM. Tour varies 4-6 hours round trip, departs near Kalapana lava viewing area.

Tour Rating: Moderate to Advanced; guests need to be 6 years and older.
We Provide: Walking sticks, Bottled water, Hawaii Lava Tour from local lava Guide highlighting Kilauea Volcano, Plant Life and Geological features.
Prices: Adult $150.00. Child (12 and under): $125.00 taxes included
Group Size: Tour limited to 6 guests per guide. Multiple guides available.

Lava Walk by Tail Me Tours

In the past, was $50 per person for a 90 minute total tour, when the lava flows were closer. Now it's a 4-4.5 hour tour, goes out every morning at 5:00 am to 6:00 am and evening 4 pm. About a one hour 45 minute walk, and you will see ocean flowing lava then poke a stick. $125 per person or $100 per person. Must be at least 5 years old. One of the companies allowed to get on the land. Andy is their guide. They also do lava boat tours.

gregnottingham@TailMeTours.com
(808) 333 4016 24/7

Burning Question #1:  Why bring a whisk?

Oh, and if you're wondering what the heck people mean when they tell you to bring a whisk, they are referring to the fact that it is difficult to get a take home lava sample on the end of a blunt wooden staff. Difficult, but not impossible.  Of the five tries we had, we got two samples to adhere to the end of our stick.  The lava is crusted over and difficult to get a small piece to separate and stick to your staff.  It is easier to tape a whisk to the end of your staff or stick and dip it into the lava to get a take home souvenir of lava covered whisk.  When we got our samples home, we found they had crumbled into pieces due to their fragility.

Burning Question #2:  Can my child do this hike?

There were children ranging from toddler to tween on this hike, when I did it in March 2013.  The family with a toddler, pregnant wife, and baby in carrier were turned away as they could not keep up with the pace.  Unless your child can walk over rough terrain for three hours, which is as tiring as hiking up a mountain, I would say leave them at home.

My kids are quite freakish as they are very fit and were able to complete the hike at least as fast as the slowest adult, but even adults find travelling over uneven lava, with the crumbling unsound footing, to be extremely difficult and exhausting.  By the end, my feet were quite sore from the punishment of the uneven ground, up and down, and sharp edges, and I am a seasoned triathlete.  A tween on this hike fell repeatedly on the lava, more often as the trip wore on and he became tired, cutting up his hands and legs.  At one point he fell and said he could not get up.  His parents never expressed concern, and in fact, I don't know where the heck his parents were as I never saw them talking to him on this hike.

If you decide to do this hike with children, I recommend decent hiking boots to protect their feet from the uneven terrain, and you can pretty much expect whining as you will be pushing your kids to their physical limits.  It is not so much a judgment call based on age but on physical fitness and toughness to endure the hours of hiking, especially if you hike back in the dark and it is very visually boring.  One of my kids was the youngest in the group, and she was also one of the fastest and most fit.  She also did not whine and enjoyed herself immensely.

Burning Question #2:  Any tips on surviving the hike?

Definitely bring rain gear, as the weather can suddenly change.  A hat and sunglasses, if the weather warrants.  Long pants to protect from falls, and hiking soles to make it easier for you.  I liked having ankle support.  Bandages and antibiotic cream.  If it is not provided for you, bring a high energy snack for the return trip and ample water.

Burning Question #3:  How dangerous is it?

There were a few times I was questioning whether I should be on the hike.  The first was when we were standing on the cliff beside the ocean entry point.  The guide warned us that if we heard any cracking sounds or felt any ground shaking, we were to run like hell inland.  There was a horde of us standing on the newly formed lava ground when she said this.

The second was when the guide warned us to keep our feet moving while standing on fresh lava, as the temperature was so hot it could burn through our shoes.  While poking a stick in the lava, you get a true sense of the searing temperatures of the lava, as the oppressive heat feels nearly unbearable on your exposed face and hands.

The third was when one of the hikers in another group attempted to get lava on the end of his stick and ended up flinging a red hot piece of lava up into the air and nearly hit another hiker with it.

Before you go, you will see a warning video at the Visitor Centre of the Volcano National Park covering various dangers of lava hiking, including unstable land suddenly sliding into the ocean.  If there is a shift of the wind, you could potentially be breathing in toxic fumes that could lead to long term health problems.

This is not Disneyland, although it may feel like it sometimes with the forest of video cameras with glowing lights and the feeling of wild west chaos at the surface lava flows with multiple tour groups arriving at once.  Treat the experience with respect and caution.

Unsupervised Children on the Net

My most popular posting on this blog deals with a popular children's role playing game which is highly addictive, Animal Jam.  Shockingly, many of the commenters are children.

Today I received a comment from someone claiming to be a nine year old, calling me "A DEMON" (capital letters the emphasis of the "child" writer) for limiting my child's use of Animal Jam.  Here it is:

i am a 9 year old kid. animal jam is epic, you DEMON, i hate you, animal jam is epic, it's epic, don't make them get off! more than an hour miss! 

Is it normal for nine year olds to call strangers demons?

My blog is aimed at adults, not children, but clearly children are reading it.  I am left to wonder whether the parents have any idea that their child is reading, or what they are posting.

A study has shown that 3/4s of five year old children use the Internet every day.  On March 2, 2011, the Mail Online reported the following:

"As many as 72 per cent of pre-school children are lured online on a daily basis by sites such as the BBC’s Cbeebies and games like Peppa Pig, the research reveals. 

Many parents are allowing their under-fives to explore the web without supervision, leaving them vulnerable to predatory paedophiles."
...
It is feared that spending so much time online will mean they lack reading and writing skills, and scientists believe the glare from the screen may damage the brain development of young children. 

Professor Tanya Byron, a clinical psychologist, said leaving a five-year-old unsupervised on the internet is equivalent to ‘abandoning a kid in a shopping centre for a couple of hours’. 

She warned: ‘Parents don’t realise they have a responsibility to prepare children for the online world as much as for the real world. 

‘A lot of parents haven’t been brought up on the internet and don’t know its dangers.’"

There was a popular public service announcement on American television back in the 1960s to 1980s, when I was growing up.  "Do you know where your children are?"  It was asked on Buffalo, New York television at 10 or 11 pm, sometimes before the news came on.  It made reference to the local curfew time, and helped make parents more aware of the need to supervise their children.  Growing up in Southern Ontario, this was a catch phrase that I remember.

Now I ask you.  Do you know what your children are watching?  Whether it is television or the Internet, there is still a need for supervision.  Please watch your children.

Am I a demon?  Yes, little children.  I am your worst nightmare.

Glass Showers: Out Damned Spot! Out I Say!

The Obsessive Researching Mommy is pleased to bring you her newest first world problem: how to clean those white water stains off glass shower doors.  Now, I believe the whole glass shower door thing is really a problem that was created especially for middle class homeowners.  In the past, people had shower curtains, or nice frosted shower doors that hid water stains.  I can't believe I renovated my bathroom and put one of these in... yeah, it's beautiful, but after every shower, I stand there with a squeegee and scrape the thing down... to prevent water marks.  And you know, that doesn't work, because water still drips down and you can't squeegee the surface perfectly.

After a previous round of research, I tried baking soda.  Didn't work, but my arm got nice and tired.  I went out and eagerly bought Bon Ami.  It didn't work.

Heck, let me make a table for you of things that don't work that were suggested in various forums:

Baking soda
Bon Ami
Bounce Dryer Sheet
Cornstarch
Mr. Clean Magic Erase

With no amount of scrubbing was I able to remove the marks.  I still had numerous vertical lines from previous water drips, with the worst at the bottom of each glass panel.  Perhaps if you have the time to clean regularly so that there is little build up, these might work for you, but they did nothing for me.

My next miracle solution that I tried was Bar Keeper's Friend.  Since I last researched this, it has become more widely available in Canada, albeit not at the low price you can find it everywhere in the U.S., like in Walmart ($2 for 13 oz of the liquid cleanser).  The cost in Canada ranges from $5-6.50.

You can find a listing of stores in Canada, but shipping costs make it an expensive proposition to buy online, so you are better off buying it locally if you can.  Here are some locations in the Vancouver area:

Williams-Sonoma, 2903 Granville Street.
Call the Kettle Black, Edmonton and Vancouver (Kerrisdale), North Vancouver (Edgemount Village).

After patronizing Call the Kettle Black, the container sat in my cupboard for a month.  I tried it today, and...

IT WORKED!

Minimal amount of scrubbing.  I bought the powder form, put it on a damp scrubbing sponges, like the 3M Scrub Sponge, and applied to the surface.  Ten minutes later, I rinsed it off, and voila.  No more white water deposits!  I did this after a regular shower, which made sure the glass had water soaking on it for a while.  I wore my Crocs while standing the shower while working on the glass, otherwise, no telling what the Boric Acid would do to my triathlon hardened foot skin...

Who said you can't get fulfillment by being a stay at home mom?  :-P

Chia Blueberry Pancakes

Ugh.  These look terrible, but they taste really great!  It's a mix of stuff that's good and bad for you.  You can make it all good by substituting the butter with another type of oil.  I'm posting it here because I don't want to misplace the recipe.  It was a hit with the whole family, and that's saying a lot because there aren't many foods in the world in that category.

Chia Blueberry Pancakes

1/2 c whole wheat flour (pastry preferred)
1/4 c spelt flour
1/4 c chia flour (chia seeds ground using coffee grinder)
1/4 c flax seed (ground)
1/4 c wheat bran

(Note: You can use any combination of flour or flour substitutes that add up to 1.5 c)

3.5 t baking powder
1 t salt

1.5 c soy milk or regular milk
1 egg or egg substitute
3 T butter or coconut oil (any oil will do)
frozen blueberries to taste...

Mix dry ingredients.  Add milk, egg, butter.  Mix.  Add blueberries last, to the density you prefer.  Note that these pancakes should be cooked at low heat, and they are fragile, so make sure you see lots of bubbles in the wet batter before flipping.  Pour about 1/4 c of batter at a time, then tilt the pan to spread them out.  There is also a tendency for the inside to stay raw because of the frozen blueberries, so they need to cook a long time.  You can turn on the oven to 200F and keep a plate in there to keep them warm until you are done cooking all of them.

Yum.

Bellingham Airport Parking Throwdown

The last time I flew through Bellingham, it was to go to Hawaii.  Well, we're going again and it's time to figure out where to leave our car.

Previously I chose U-Haul, which actually isn't primarily in the business of airport parking, but had this as its side business.  Back in 2010 it was very unprofessional.  There was no shuttle, and it was hard to get a human being to answer the phone.  But it was cheap and you could walk there from the airport.  When we arrived very early on a red-eye, the facility was closed and we had to send the drive to walk the one mile.

This time I chose U-Haul again.  You get some man on his cell phone, and he asks you to text message him with your flight information, which he confirms by texting you.  So how did it work for us?

I texted him again to add a second car for parking, which he confirmed.  We arrived 30 minutes earlier than expected, and he wasn't there.  After waiting for him to show up at the confirmed time, we found out that he somehow forgot the second parking spot, but luckily there was exactly one left, so we were okay.  It was about a 20-30 minute walk from the airport, which my husband opted to do instead of getting a ride in either direction.

Here are the parking options I found, in order of proximity to the airport:

Port of Bellingham, right at the airport:  Main lot $10/day, overflow $9/day.  This will drop down to $8/day in the overflow lots, starting March 1, 2013.

Easy Airport Parking, $7/day, includes shuttle. 0.9 miles.  3360 Airport Drive.

U-Haul is $30/week or $5/day.  This includes a ride to the airport, either by a van or by taxi, which they will pay for.  6 am - 10 pm.  1.0 mile.  3340 Airport Drive.  Reservations accepted.

Bellingham Parking >=2 weeks, $5/day.  1.2 miles.  3703 Bennett Drive.  Free shuttle 9-5, pay $7 outside these hours.

Wiki Wiki:  $8/day, includes shuttle, drink.  Reservations accepted.  Special rates for 30 days.  Secure, gated. 1.4 miles.  4770 Pacific Highway.

Designated Park & Ride, $5/day.  You pay for your own taxi.  Requires 24 hours' notice, $5 deposit. 2.1 miles.  4226 Pacific Highway.

Enjoy your trip! 

Searchable terms: BLI, where to park Bellingham, Bellingham BLI Airport Parking Comparison, which parking lot BLI Bellingham, review parking BLI Bellingham, best place to park Bellingham BLI, Bellingham Airport parking rates long term, bellingham off airport parking, bellingham airport parking reviews, easy airport parking bellingham, bellingham airport park and fly

Do You Want Cancer with your Candy?

Today at school pickup I found both of my kids lined up at the infernal ice cream truck that shows up and parks in front of the school when the weather warms.  They had just purchased a product from Popsicle called "Shots."

I bluntly told the kids that they will get cancer if they continue to eat things with artificial colours.  Yeah, okay, I admit that I was guilty of a bit of frothing at the mouth over the top mommyism, but there was some truth there.  When I got home, I did some research on this.

The Center for Science in the Public Interest says that food dyes pose the risk of cancer, hyperactivity in children, and allergies.

The three most widely used dyes, Red 40, Yellow 5, and Yellow 6, are contaminated with known carcinogens, says CSPI. Another dye, Red 3, has been acknowledged for years by the Food and Drug Administration to be a carcinogen, yet is still in the food supply.

Despite those concerns, each year manufacturers pour about 15 million pounds of eight synthetic dyes into our foods. Per capita consumption of dyes has increased five-fold since 1955, thanks in part to the proliferation of brightly colored breakfast cereals, fruit drinks, and candies pitched to children.

“These synthetic chemicals do absolutely nothing to improve the nutritional quality or safety of foods, but trigger behavior problems in children and, possibly, cancer in anybody,” said CSPI executive director Michael F. Jacobson, co-author of the 58-page report, “Food Dyes: A Rainbow of Risks.” “The Food and Drug Administration should ban dyes, which would force industry to color foods with real food ingredients, not toxic petrochemicals.”

Blue 1, Red 40, Yellow 5, and Yellow 6 have long been known to cause allergic reactions in some people. CSPI says that while those reactions are not common, they can be serious and provide reason enough to ban those dyes. Furthermore, numerous studies have demonstrated that dyes cause hyperactivity in children.

But the biggest concern is cancer. Back in 1985, the acting commissioner of the FDA said that Red 3, one of the lesser-used dyes, “has clearly been shown to induce cancer” and was “of greatest public health concern.” However, Secretary of Agriculture John R. Block pressed the Department of Health and Human Services not to ban the dye, and he apparently prevailed—notwithstanding the Delaney Amendment that forbids the use of in foods of cancer-causing color additives. Each year about 200,000 pounds of Red 3 are poured into such foods as Betty Crocker’s Fruit Roll-Ups and ConAgra’s Kid Cuisine frozen meals. Since 1985 more than five million pounds of the dye have been used.

Tests on lab animals of Blue 1, Blue 2, Green 3, Red 40, Yellow 5, and Yellow 6 showed signs of causing cancer or suffered from serious flaws, said the consumer group. Yellow 5 also caused mutations, an indication of possible carcinogenicity, in six of 11 tests.

In addition, according to the report, FDA tests show that the three most-widely used dyes, Red 40, Yellow 5, and Yellow 6, are tainted with low levels of cancer-causing compounds, including benzidine and 4-aminobiphenyl in Yellow 5. However, the levels actually could be far higher, because in the 1990s the FDA and Health Canada found a hundred times as much benzidine in a bound form that is released in the colon, but not detected in the routine tests of purity conducted by the FDA.

I decided to look up Red 40 at a helpful website of the same name and find out if it was in any of the foods that my family eats.  Unfortunately, it was, including the Popsicle brand, although "shots" were not mentioned.  It did list other frozen treats by Popsicle that are brightly coloured.

Here are some of the foods we sometimes eat in our family that contain Red 40:

Froot Loops (We eat it only on vacations)
McCormick Food Colours (not sure whether this is the brand we buy)
Sprinkles (on Tim Horton's doughnuts and Purdy's ice cream)
Twizzlers (at the theatre)
Starburst
M&Ms
Skittles
Candy Canes
Bubbalicious
Trident
Smarties
Minute Maid Orange Soda
Schweppes Raspberry Gingerale
Gatorade Fruit Punch
Lipton Brisk Iced Tea
Ocean Spray Ruby Red Grapefruit Juice
Kraft Barbecue Sauce
Kraft Catalina Dressing
Frito Lay Doritos
Betty Crocker Fruit by the Foot (A&W kids' packs)
Hershey's Strawberry Syrup
Kellogg's Nutrigrain Cereal Bars
Jell-O Instant Pudding Chocolate
Mott's Fruitsation Apple Sauce Strawberry
Children's Tylenol Cold Liquid Grape
Bayer Children's Flintstones Multivitamin
Centrum Performance Multivitamin

That was only one of the potential cancer causing food dyes.  What about the rest of them?

Moral of the story:

Avoid buying processed foods, drinks, and drugs.

"Car Free": The Oakridge Redevelopment Project

They're going to redevelop the mall near my home over the next 10 years.  It was first built in 1959 as Vancouver's first mall.  What is proposed is an eyesore, with at least one phallic building 45 stories tall in the middle of a flat calm sea of single family housing.  That is taller than buildings in downtown Vancouver.  It does not make any sense, especially considering the fact that Oakridge is located at the highest point in Vancouver, adding to the phallus effect.

The developers intend to provide less parking spaces per square foot of retail space and less parking for the proposed 2,800 new residential units than is normally provided.  Why?  To promote alternative modes of transportation.

About one third of the residential units will have parking.  There will be 6,694 parking spaces.  Currently retail area is 620,000 and they want to increase it to 1,430,600.  More than a doubling of retail space, but no doubling of retail parking.

Let's forget the fact that they're also saving $20,000 for each parking space they DON'T provide.  Yes, that's right, we believe you, developers, when you say that you're doing this for the environment, not to increase your profit.  After all, developers are environmentalists, aren't they?

WWF Canada commissioned a survey with some interesting findings:

The driving paradox: more than three-quarters (78 per cent) of Canadians know their driving has a negative environmental impact, but they are not likely to give up their vehicles even when they could easily use other forms of transportation (75 per cent). In fact, Canadians are more willing to give up their cell phones, TVs, Internet access, coffee, junk food, credit cards and for some, even sex, before they set aside their car keys.

It's interesting to look at an extreme example of car free development in a 42 storey condo development in downtown Toronto.

Normally, building plans follow a formula for how much parking space should be allowed; current standards, if applied to the building, would provide approximately 140 parking spaces for residents.

"To assume a residential development of the project's scale might be totally car-free runs counter to expert study and experience," the staff report stated. "Although there are many households in the downtown (area) without cars, it would be highly unlikely to find 315 of them permanently concentrated in one building."

It also stated that, "exempting the project from the city's parking standards would create a negative precedent that undermines the integrity of the parking provisions of the zoning bylaw."

The skeptic in me just doesn't buy the lines the developer is feeding us.  Less parking spaces does not mean less people will be using their cars.  It just means they will park elsewhere.  If I was a retailer at Oakridge now, I would be asking those questions, because parking hassles are bad for business.