Interesting Site to Stir Social Change

Have you checked out Change.org? It's a new kind-of social networking site. Instead of just connecting people with their friends, it connects people with "changes."

In a nutshell, a change is any cause you want to promote. Most of the ones on Change.org are social changes, such as ending abortion or solving world hunger. You can join existing changes or even setup your own. It's as simple as typing what you're trying to do.

Change.org also connects people with existing non-profit organizations. You can search for non-profits and then add data about them. You can review non-profits, add photos, events, and other things.

Interestingly, Change.org also promotes easy donating to non-profits. This is great for social causes!

There are a lot more features, but you'll just have to check out the site to see them. Be sure to surf around and see what appeals to you. You can make a change!

Get Affordable Glasses Online

I'm always for saving a little money. When my glasses broke a few days ago, I set out to find an affordable lens-replacement option.

LensCrafters wanted $290 to put lens in the frames I already had. I couldn't believe their price. Plus, it would take two weeks to get them done. I figured there had to be a better option.

Then I found 39DollarGlasses. As the name says, they sell complete glasses for $39. That's a bargain in anyone's book. The only problem was that I want to use my old frames (they're the cool Flexon kind that you can bend & they spring back into shape). Luckily, these guys can put new lenses in your old frames as well.

In the end, I'm paying 39DollarGlasses about $70 for new lenses. They're more than $39 because I opted for the anti-reflective coating and my frames are semi-rimless (extra labor, I presume). I overnighted my old frames to them, and they're overnighting everything back when they're done. When it's all done, it will have cost about $100. That's much better than $290. I'll just have to remember to update this post and let you guys know if it works out. :)

UPDATE (Mar. 5) - My glasses came this afternoon. They are perfect! The prescription seems right (I can see now!), the frames are straightened out, and I got a nice microfiber bag and hard case for FREE. I highly recommend this company.

Awesome Website for Vegetarian, Vegan, and Meatless Diets

It's odd for a life-long meat eater to ditch meat for a while, but that's what I'm doing. I don't think animals are sacred, but I do want to observe a Lenten fast. Thus, it's veggies for me until Easter.

While looking online for some veggie recipes, I stumbled across VegWeb. This is a fantastic site that has a community of vegetarians, vegans, and other meatless eaters. The feature I like the best is the recipes. You can add individual recipes to your own "recipe box," and even add them to a "grocery list." Then the site will tell you exactly what you need to buy at the store. Cool, right?

My first real vegetarian meal was Extra Good Black Bean Burritos. I'm not a great cook, but these turned out awesome! I ended up eating two tonight (definitely overkill) and freezing three. Thus, I've got some yummy food waiting for me!

If you're looking for a great resource for meatless diets, check out VegWeb.

Get a Free Game and a Free App Every Day

Do you like free software? What about free games? If so, check out Giveaway of the Day.

This site offers a free software download every day of the week. Their subsidiary site gives away a free game every day as well.

All you have to do is check the site (or subscribe via RSS) and download the software each day. But be sure to install it that day as well, since the license system only lets you download and install for a single.

The coolest part is that you'd usually have to pay for all this software. And we're not talking about $5 software. Most of these apps are in the $20-50 range. That's not bad for a free giveaway.

So if you're in the mood for some free stuff, check it out. The best option is to subscribe, so you don't miss a good piece of software.

Get to Sticking with Stikkit

Don't you love little yellow post-it notes? Who doesn't?

In case you were feeling deprived without having electronic post-it notes, you can relax. There's a new website that has you covered: stikkit.

When you create an account with stikkit, you can create an endless number of notes. Each one can be shared, commented on, and send out notifications when it is updated.

But the coolest part of stikkit is that these notes are smart. When you're typing along, stikkit recognizes certain "magic words" and does things. For instance, if you type "tag as X," stikkit gets that you want to apply X label to that stikkit. Cool, right? You can also add contacts (or "peeps"), to do items, calendar items, etc. It's pretty neat.

You should go get stikkin it with stikkit!

ReliOn Ultra Compact Ear Thermometer

Last night I bought us a new thermometer. My wife has always wanted an ear thermometer, for their ease of use. So I bought the ReliOn Ultra Compact Ear Thermometer.

My initial thoughts of the product were great. It cost $20, but it's a tiny little gizmo that has its own little storage case. I thought it would be great for general use, but also when we have kids.

However, my wife has tried it several times, and it's very disappointing. We keep getting this weird error message that just reads "AA." According to the instruction manual, that means that the unit's temperature needs to stabilize and adjust to room temperature. However, no matter how long we let it sit (even overnight), we can still get that error. We've successfully used the gadget a couple times, but over half the time the "AA" error displays instead.

Opinion: This one's going back to the store. I guess that's one benefit of shopping at Wal-Mart. :)