Fun and Romance on a Budget

      Wishing for a little romance with that significant other, but can't think of anything than the typical going-to-the-movies-then-dinner date?  Having an even harder time thinking of a non-typical date and staying within a budget?  Look no further, as I found a neat website that lists 50 fun and cheap date ideas!

      I'm not saying that those dates (like the movie-then-dinner and vice versa, the grab-coffee/lunch/dinner, or the crazy-expensive-trips-to-amusement-parks, etc.) are not fun; most of them are a classic and it is the time spent together that makes it enjoyable.  But, a little variety in how to spend time together might just be as fun, if not more fun, as both parties stumble into a new (and fairly inexpensive) activity together.  Heck, it might feel like a first date.

Here's a few (untried, so not-yet-approved) ideas that I'd add to the list:

1. If you haven't done so, walk around the neighborhood and explore the little shops/parks.
2. Do chores together (like walking a pet, washing a pet, gardening, getting a haircut, washing the car, etc.)
3. Start a scrapbook storybook together.

      I hope the list inspires others to try a non-typical date activity. I'm eager to try some of them too.  Just remember, that for the date to work, both partners need to plan together to lessen the stress of having to plan everything by a lonesome self.  Good luck and may you all have fun :)

     Here's that link again:

"50 Best Fun (+ Cheap!) Date Ideas"

A Heart-Warming Birthday Gift From My Best Friend

      It's been 3 weeks since my birthday and my friend Jason showed up twice at my workplace looking for me, determined to present me with his gift.  Just before I clocked in for work, he handed me a large bag with lots of chocolates, Adventure Time gear, and a birthday card from his parents.

      8 hours of good and hard work later, it was time to go home for the night.  While I waited for Dad to pick me up, I rummaged through the goodies in the bag.  At the bottom I found a small, but thick, photo album.  It was a simple gift, but I found it to be the most sentimental one out of all of the things in the bag.

      The photo album contained notes and commentary from Jason complimenting the pictures of me, him, and others in different occasions.  His commentary were heart-felt.  Jason's creative gift is worth noting because most of us forget that it's not about the material things we receive, but the memories they capture.

      As human beings, we put sentimental value in objects because it reminds us of a special someone or occasion.  A gift like this photo album, filled with precious memories of ours, warms my heart because it wasn't a usual present.  He gave me a remembrance of how he and I felt during the moments captured in the photos he chose to include in the album.  That really is what I call crafty.

      Jason, if you're reading this, thank you very much for your present.  It is such a joy going through the album page by page.  I couldn't stop smiling and chuckling while going through the memory lane you put together.  Let's capture more pictures together as we go through life being the best a friend can ask for.
 As written on the cover of the photo album:

"We are all inventors, each sailing out on a voyage of discovery, guided each by a private chart of which there is no duplicate.  The world is all gates, all opportunities." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

  I am glad that our paths intertwine in our respective private charts.  I hope it stays that way for a very long time.

From Useful to Useful Again

      On top of being a regular phone, smart phones can act as a camera, a voice recorder, an alarm clock, a game console device, an MP3 player, PDA, as well as be able to connect to the internet like regular laptops.  So many people have smart phones and only have to keep track of one wire.  For me, I still own a simple cell phone.  I have a point-and-click camera and a 3DS with their own individual chargers and USB connector.  I needed a way to organize these wires so they don't wind up "inseparable".

       I got this idea from my brother who has a shoebox with toilet paper tubes storing his individual wires.  I thought I could do the same, but decorate it too.  Here's a tutorial for anyone curious as to how my cousin and I went about it.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Tube Containers

Tools

• toilet paper tubes
• scissors
• pencils and eraser
• markers and colored pencils
• glue
• construction papers

Steps

1. Cut a construction paper evenly in half hot-dog style.
   

2. Cut the same construction paper evenly in half again, hamburger style.  The length of the paper should be enough to cover a single toilet paper tube.
   
3. Fold the paper in half.  Crease the fold and then unfold the paper.
   
4. Fold one end of the paper to the middle and then crease it.
   
5. Do the same to the other side and then fold the whole thing in half.
   
   
   
   
6. Using a pencil, draw a design you want to cut out.  I used half circles on the edge to create full circles when the paper is unfolded.  
   
7. Cut out the design and then unfold the paper.
   
8. I layered the paper on top of another that was not designed, then glued them together.
   
   
   
   
9. Using markers and colored pencils I decorated the papers.  You can use whatever decorations you'd like (stickers, collage, etc.). 
   
10. After decorating it, glue the construction papers to the toilet paper tube. If you're using a glue stick, make sure to tie a rubber band around the whole tube and wait a day before removing the band.  This will ensure that the glue dries on the tube and won't come off easily.
    
    
    
    
11. Carefully fold your wires and place in the tubes and voila!  A newly decorated tube container is pretty and ready to hold your wires!
    
    
    
    

I hope yours turned out well too, if not better!