Stuff We Like

I am the Proud Owner…

…of a beautiful new cell phone (mobile phone to my colleagues on the other side of the pond). Some of my readers may be familiar with this personal anecdote I wrote last year about my “Love Affair with Cell phones”.

So I eventually gave in this week, after my old phone finally conked out and got this little beauty: -

Mine is just like the red and white one on the left. It works a charm and has all the lovely gadgets that new phones have nowadays. Luckily I didn’t have to pay a penny for it and now I can get rid of my land line home phone that I rarely use. So that will save me a bob or two as well

Love Affair with a Cell (Mobile) Phone

There’s something to said about cell phones (mobile phones or mobiles to us Brits). I for one am a bit of an addict. I don’t know how, why or when I became addicted to cell phones but it happened quite unexpectedly.

My first phone was an Ericsson I believe back in the early nineties. It was rather clunky and had no Internet or texting capabilities. I loved that phone and every night I would set it on it’s little charger and wait for the red light to turn green. Why? Well everyone knows that if you over charge the battery will deplete and you will eventually deplete talk time. I would never allow that to happen to my “baby”.

Then came my Nokia phase. In my mind, no one but no one could surpass the superior quality of those phones. They were smaller, sleeker and great to flash about. They were the status symbol of my generation and untouchable by any other competitor.

As I grow older, I find myself using my phone less and less, however my desire to have a nice sleek one hasn’t diminished. My Motorola Razor is two years old and I could probably do with an upgrade, but when I look at the usage and see that it’s less than twenty minutes a month, I balk at the idea.

Still the desire to have that delicious new Apple iPhone beckons and pulls at my heartstrings. Do I need it? Of course not, but a girl can dream, can’t she?

Warm Autumn’s Day

As summer draws to an end, we hold our breaths in anticipation of the colder months looming on the horizon. So it was a refreshing surprise to have a last hurrah from the waning season, this week. Tuesday was a most glorious day and perfect for a picnic.

So after much contemplation about where to have lunch, we decided to just take a picnic down to the docks and enjoy this gift of a day. We prepared our sandwiches and a little salad and off we went.

On our brief walk down to the pier, we stopped at a local corner shop to get some drinks. The familiar cashier behind the till greeted us with the usual, “nice to see you”. We mentioned our little romantic plan and how old-fashioned but quaint it was. A customer in the queue behind us quipped that picnics never go out of style and the more the merrier. We smiled and nodded in agreement, as we went on our way towards the river.

The weather was still beautiful when we arrived at the dock’s edge and a cool breeze kept the temperature at the perfect level. As we walked down to a spot to have our repast we were greeted by smiles and an occasional “hellos”. It seems as if this warm day had brought out the cooler and more laid back attitude in everyone.

It’s small moments like these that enrich our lives and therefore deserves a prominent position on the list of stuff we like to do.

Hershey-licious

Today’s star is the Hershey’s Special Dark Chocolate Bar. I think I see a theme developing in this section – food, glorious food!

I’ve never been a fan of American chocolate as it has this funny after taste that’s hard to define but sort of tastes a bit like plastic! And I’ve never been a fan of dark chocolate. I find it bitter and unpalatable. I must be getting old but recently my taste buds have been aroused by the silky flavors of the aforementioned delight, Another reason for my recent desire for this dark chocolate could be a greater acceptance of American culture and food.

I have an English friend, living in England, who adores Hershey’s Special Dark Chocolate. So much so that she has commissioned me on a couple of occasions to send her a few bars. Last week I thought it would be a lovely surprise, if I just sent her a couple as a treat. Unfortunately for her and fortunately for me, the bars have all but disappeared from our fridge. I’ve posted a little picture below of the culprit devouring the evidence. And no, those aren’t my teeth, so you know who I’m putting the blame on.

In the meantime get your own bar and enjoy this sweet, decadent treat.

BBC America

As a UK Expatriate, living in America getting acclimated to American T.V. was “different” to put it mildly. When we lived in New York, we were able to watch a lot of British shows on the local PBS channels. It’s not that American shows are unwatchable, because in the U.K. we do get a lot of programming from the U.S. I suppose it’s more of a longing for something familiar and BBC America tries to bring that touch of “English” to the American “Soul”.

As a Briton residing this side of the pond, having few T.V. programs that you can watch week-to-week with a British slant is made easier with the existence of BBC America. At EtaBlog, this is one of our favorite channels to watch. The shows are high quality the comedies are in true British humor tradition.

One of our favorite shows, “The Dragon’s Den”, will almost certainly be on American T.V. in the near future. Another one of our favorite comedies is “Absolutely Fabulous” and although not in current rotation on BBC America, you can watch all the episodes at your leisure by clicking on the banner below. You will also find links to many other British shows and other media.

We Like UTZ

Have you ever had something that every time you see it, it reminds you of something else? In this case were talking about potato chips. At our local gas station we occasionally search for something to extinguish that late night craving. This week one of our favorites and our featured “Stuff We Like” post talks about potato chips. We’ve even found a little help in pronouncing the name “UTZ”. This inexpensive bag of munchie heaven is priced at a startling $1.19 which is down from its normal price of $1.59, this 3-3/4 ounce delight is a real pleaser. The gritty greasy happiness screams, “Satisfaction Guaranteed and More, More, More!” Every once in a while we have to indulge in the finer things in life. We at etaBlog have a “Well Being” section as well as a “Food Maze” section where we discuss topics such as health and great food. So you’re wondering how does UTZ fit in? Check out this video for some help.

Even My Cousin Vinny enjoys Yutes, Yoots or UTZ. If you have something you like, use the contact button and let us know. You can also comment on this post and you could possibly be our “Stuff We Like” featured person of the week. Until we meet again, munch it up!

- Two UTZ