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I go in cycles of accumulation and purge. Right now, I’m fighting off the accumulation itch (new lipstick!) and trying to stick to the New Year’s task of getting rid of the stuff that is taking over. Which is where you, dear reader, come in. Most of my “overstock” items are headed to Goodwill or perhaps eBay, if I’m feeling energetic, but I’ve decided to give away a few of my favorite things right here. Note: all of the giveaway items are new/unused or near-new, and I will label them accordingly. If you are interested in this week’s giveaway, simply leave a comment at this post by Monday night at 11:59 pm cst. (one comment per person, please) I’ll draw the winner and post the name in Wednesday’s blog post.

So, for week one, I’m giving away a near-new (flipped through once – so it looks brand new) copy of “Don’t Jump! The Northwest Winter Blues Survival Guide”. I got this for my birthday last year. It was on my amazon list because 1. we had just visited Portland, Oregon, and loved it and 2. the illustrations are by Alli Arnold, who is great! Do I, suburban Chicagoan, need a book about surviving winter in the Northwest? Of course not! But you might! Bonne chance!

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Let me start by saying that Juno was great! I love witty banter, and I found myself laughing out loud a lot. Good movies are such a joy, and 90 minute long good movies are even better. Meanwhile, the trailer for the upcoming Kate Hudson/Matthew McConaughey movie was bad, bad, bad. It made Gigli seem like Shakespeare. But enough of my opinions. (Go see Juno!) On with the Five:

1. for marie
2. Starling
3. When Magic Finds You
4. 42/365
5. Oxford Island

The weekend begins. A little soccer, a little je ne sais quoi.

I have to add that Jon Stewart, working without a script, makes it seem far too easy.

And with that, (I’m feeling bossy today) see you on Monday!

post script – sorry that most of you won’t be able to access photo #4 …. I’ll watch for that next week ….

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…. like having an idea of how the blog entry is going to go each day. I have a backlog of things I’d like to share accumulated over the two week hiatus, but am unsure how or when to do it. However, today’s plan is to see a matinee of Juno, and I’ll postpone working on this blog situation until the weekend. I am so eager to get out and see a movie – I’ve been all dvd and no theatre for months! (By the way, one of the rentals was Once – loved it – so if you also missed out, now’s your chance on dvd.) I’m also craving magazines: specifically, Domino (organizing theme!), Traditional Home (big craving for house ideas and inspiration right now) and Real Simple Weddings.

photo from realsimple.com

Real Simple’s first Weddings issue is available starting today at Crate & Barrel stores, and then follows on newsstands on the 28th. Yes, I called my local C&B to make sure they’ll have it for sale today. Thank you, phone anonymity. After clicking through the “Wedding Experts” section of the Real Simple site, I discovered that Sesame Letterpress is among the stationery experts. (really, the whole group is great: Birch, Peculiar Pair Press, and Echo Letterpress are the others – and congratulations to you all!) I am dying to see their work, and let’s face it, the rest of the issue! So please, C&B associate who rings up my purchase, take pity on this married-mother-of-a-10-year-old standing in line with the engaged 20-somethings for her copy! I will be there. I can’t wait until the 28th! Sorry.

See you tomorrow with the Five (and perhaps my thoughts on Juno)

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January is when I start spring-cleaning the house. Odd, because it’s not spring, but it works because there’s not a whole lot going on in January. Right now, I’m in the midst of wall washing and baseboard cleaning, which gives me a lot of time to think about my favorite cleaning products. Here are those that make the Speckled Egg Hall of Fame:

1. Method Shower Cleaner (pictured above) I tried it because Real Simple recommended it, but I’ve stayed with it because it has done a great job of keeping our glass shower doors streak-free, and has made the tile look much nicer as well. Note: You will still have to clean your shower from time to time, despite what the label claims, but this will really stretch the time between “deep” cleanings. available at Target
2. Shout Color Catchers I am a laundry nut, and take pride in my cleaning and folding skills. I refuse to go without this ingenious product! Simply throw one sheet in with your color loads, and the dyes that otherwise could run or bleed will accumulate on this sheet. Genius, I tell you. Once you try, you too will be addicted. also, available at Target
3. Dyson Vacuum Don’t get me wrong: I think that Miele vacuums are quite functional, and beautiful, and we own one. Then, the basement vacuum broke and we bought a Dyson. Soon after, the Miele was the basement vacuum, and I was lugging (yes, the downside is its weight) the Dyson for my regular vacuum needs. I call it the Biore strip of vacuums. It’s addictively amazing, and yet horrifying, how much stuff it picks up every time. I find myself wondering how all of that gunk got into my carpet seemingly overnight! My dream is for them to develop a lighter canister model. That would be perfection – in the mean time, I’m sticking with my (lighter than the canister!) upright DC-07. big surprise – we bought ours at Target

What do you think? Are there ultimate cleaning products I’m forgetting? I look forward to your comments. And worry not: it’s not all drudgery: next week the Hall of Fame will deal with beauty products.

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It was 65 in Chicago on Monday! An early spring day, complete with a tornado watch. (oh joy.) So not normal for January 7 …. I even walked the dog wearing my Keen “Bali” summer sandals. Supposedly, it’s back to reality this afternoon. The funny thing is, this week in NYC, it’s the NYTimes’ Arts & Leisure Week. Lots of cool events, like an evening with the creator (and stars) of Mad Men, Martha Stewart talking about being a megabrand, and an interview with Feist. I’ve been virtually anticipating this week for months, and these are the events I would be going to, if I lived in NYC, (or had made travel plans) and had purchased tickets. In addition, I read that Natalie Merchant is in town this week, too! I had been comforting myself by thinking “at least it will be cold and miserable that week – it’s January after all –  so it’s not like I’d want to be there.” Hah! It’s warm through Friday. Joke’s on me.

As consolation, David Sedaris is in Chicago (at the Steppenwolf Theatre). Didn’t get tickets to that, either. But I did try. I’m sure his shows will be fabulous, and hilarious.

Hmmm, guess I’ll finish my Kinder Bueno, courtesy of my brother-in-law who lives in Switzerland,  and I’ll get back to cleaning the baseboards. The glamour.

Speaking of cleaning, see you tomorrow with the first Hall of Fame entries.

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