Atlanta area food drive

Join existing community efforts, and help your neighbors.  In Atlanta, 11Alive (TV Station WXIA) is doing a huge Summer Food Drive on Friday June 19.

It’s easy to participate, and will help the thousands of people who go hungry in Atlanta – especially the kids who would get fed during the school year at school, but now that school is out, often dont have a complete meal.  11Alive is partnering with the Atlanta Braves Foundation, Publix, and the Atlanta Community Food Bank to help change that.

And so can you.

Bring canned food to any Braves Game in June and receive a special ticket offer.

On June 19th, every Publix store in the area will be collecting non-perishable food items. All you have to do is drop the food in the barrel at the Publix store.

PS – Mama Says “No More Frozen Pizza!” is joining the cause and will donate 2% of sales proceeds to agencies and programs working to support Americans who need assistance with meals and basic food items.  You can buy a gift for a new cook, new bride, or new college grad and help contribute to feeding the hungry at the same time!!

Library Chic — money saving idea

[simage=521,288,n,left]  I’m in two book clubs (thankfully, both have bi-monthly schedules). Perhaps I’m trying to channel my imaginary, inner-English major or re-create those fast-paced AP Literature discussions.  While I enjoy reading and participating in the group discussions, there are times when between trying to find the book or purchasing books when I’m not excited about the topic or the author that I want to rethink the decision. What if I don’t like the book? Then what do I do with it?  Can you re-gift a book you didn’t enjoy?

Okay, I admit it; my house overflows with books and magazines. And I have a difficult time just donating books when I’m done reading them. In my mind, the characters and the author deserve a home with loving readers and ample shelf space.

Then a couple of years ago, I noticed several members of my book club had library copies of the book. How chic. How smart. Until that point, I thought that I was clever by purchasing used books online at Powell’s. With a used book my ‘investment’ was streamlined…and my emotional baggage was minimized.

Curious to rediscover the public library system, I went online; then made a visit to my local branch.  What a treasure trove of books. The BEST feature of the public library is the online search-and-hold feature.

Simply go online and use the search feature to find a specific book.  Then you can request that the library either hold the book or have it transferred in for you. Deluxe service. And the price is right! It’s like special ordering a book from one of the major chains!

[simage=522,288,n,right]Last spring, I laughed out loud while watching Sex and The City: The Movie as Carrie regaled Mr. Big with the  joys of the public library system. Finally, I was one trend ahead of Carrie.

Don’t let the economy curtail your reading. Get creative. Exchange books with your friends. Some bookstores such as Powell’s will purchase your gently used books in exchange for cash or store credit toward future purchases. You can also buy and sell used books on Amazon.com. Recently, the Atlanta Journal Constitution ran an article about online book, CD and DVD swap sites. Or consider holding your own book swap at work or your next play date. Additionally, you can list the books you’ve read and are reading on shelfari.com – and have online discussions with friends.

Mama Says, be thrifty – read and share and your books.

The Spanish have mastered the art of the tapas, or the little plate. What could be less cost effective than serving a little plate of one kind of food followed by another little plate of something else followed by…. Well, you get it.

On a recent visit to Spain (check out my photos!) I kept a pretty close eye on the little plates, and learned something very thrifty……the same ingredient kept showing up on different little plates, just dressed a little differently each time.

The key to the whole operation, it seems, is buying the best quality of your main ingredient in bulk, and then making slight changes on each plate. Now while I’m not recommending multiple little plates as a way to save money or time, what I am thinking about is that if you buy 2 pounds of broccoli you don’t want to eat 2 pounds of steamed broccoli over the next week – how boring would THAT be?

Instead, try steaming 1 lb of broccoli for a meal or two, and then make a broccoli salad with 1/2 a pound. With the last half a pound, cut up the broccoli and sautee it with an onion and a piece of yellow squash.

Voila! One ingredient (bought at a bulk price), 3 fabulous dishes!!