Costco vs Coke

I'm impartial when it comes to which cola to drink. I have friends that are die-hard Coke fans and die-hard Pepsi fans. Personally I'll drink whatever is on sale at the time that I'm at the store. At one time I did have a Coke Rewards addiction, but that's a topic from a previous blog entry.

I shop at Costco and I notice they have more Coke products (Sprite, Dasani, etc) than Pepsi products. So because of that I do tend to drink more Coke than Pepsi...until now. Costco and Coke are in a dispute about the price Coke charges versus the value Costco promises to it's members.

A few questions comes to mind:
- Will Costco now sell Pepsi products only?
- Is Coke really charging more money or just as much as if I bought it at the grocery store?
- Do Costco members care what brand of cola they sell or do they just want whatever is on sale?
- Will the loss of Costco as a retailer really hurt Coke?

All this talk of cola is making me thirsty. I think I'll go and grab me a Pepsi ;)

I Love My FHI

I know a lot of people who rave about the Chi flat iron. Well I'm a fan of the FHI Heat Runway flat iron. Some pronounce it F.H.I. or Fee.



I am fortunate enough to work at InStyle.com and one of the perks is that I get a lot of products for free or cheap. All the products I mentioned in my post yesterday I got for $1 each (including the hot curlers). The FHI Heat Runway flat iron costs $450 but a lot of retailers sell it online for less. Every year it's featured as one of InStyle's Best Beauty Buys. It has multiple heat settings from 170 degrees to 450 degrees (I usually use it at 370 degrees).

As a regular consumer I probably wouldn't buy the FHI because it is such a high price point BUT if I was a stylist or straightened my hair a lot I would absolutly invest in this flat iron. On average I can spend $40-$60 every 2 weeks getting my hair washed, conditioned, flat ironed and styled. That's about $960 to $1440 a year. I hate to sound like an infomercial but the FHI Heat Runway flat iron practically pays for itself after about 10 uses. Who hasn't used their flat iron at least 10 times in the past year?

If you want sleek, smooth, hair that won't snap, crackle, pop as you are straightening it then invest in a FHI Heat Runway.

Secret to My Hair Success

This past week I received a lot of compliments on my hair. It was soft with shine, volume and movement. I have a few good hair days, but I can't remember the last time I had a good hair week. So I'm going to share the secret to my hair success.

1. I washed my hair with Dr. Miracles Tingling 2 in 1 Dandraff Shampoo & Conditioner.
2. I conditioned with Aphogee Balancing Mosturizer. I put it on my hair, put on a shower cap and let it sit for 30 minutes.
3. I washed out the Aphogee and conditioned again with Pantene Relaxed and Natural Conditioner.
4. I rinsed my hair thoroughly, making sure no product was left in it.
5. Towel dried my hair and sprayed it with Dove Heat Defense Therapy.
6. I blow dried my hair straight.
7. I used my FHI Heat flat iron at 370 degrees (it can go as high as 450).
8. While flat ironing my hair I heated up my Conair Hot Rollers.
9. Once my hair was flat ironed I put in the hot rollers for about 20-30 minutes.
10. Took the hot rollers out and pin curled my hair so I could go to bed.

I know that sounds like a lot but the extra steps were due to having to wash and condition my hair. Maintaining my hairstyle for the rest of the week was the easy part.

1. Turn on my Conair Hot Rollers.
2. Roll my hair and let sit for 20-30 minutes.
3. Take out the hot rollers and pin curl my hair.

In the morning all I had to do was take out the pins and use my fingers and a wide tooth comb to style. No sleeping with rollers in my hair. No having to get up early to do my hair. I had the Conair Hot Rollers in my hair while I was watching TV the night before. It was fast and easy and my hair looked great all day long.

I honestly don't know what took me so long to get Hot Rollers cause I think that is the true secret to my hair success. Now that I have them, I want more. I want to see if I can spiral set hot curl my hair.

I know my natural hair friends are probably cringing because of all the heat applied to my hair. But I don't have a relaxer and the hot curlers provide less heat to the hair than if I had used my Gold and Hot curling iron every day.

So what do you think? Anyone willing to give my method a try? Got any hair secrets you want to share?

Cold Weather Comfort Food

When the cold weather hits there are certain foods I look forward to having and cooking. Here is my top 10 list, what's yours?

1. Starbucks Chai Tea Latte
2. White Hot Chocolate (preferably from Max Brenner's)
3. Gumbo (brown or red...I make both)
4. Casseroles (usually Chicken)
5. Shrimp and Corn Chowder; Tomato Cheddar Soup; all kinds of soups
6. Beef Stew
7. Apple Pie or Baked Apples
8. Homemade Baked Macaroni and Cheese
9. Apple Cider
10. Chili

Does anyone have any recipes for the above that they care to share? Or one of your favorites? I already got another Apple Pie recipe ;)