The Chronic Consumer

I haven’t bought a new game for my Nintendo DS in ages, so I decided to check out what kinds of titles are available now. I came across Mystery Case Files: Millionheir that looks like it would be a lot of fun, and have added the game to my Wish List.

Mystery Case Files: Millionheir is called a search-and-solve game, which I guess means that in order to advance through the mystery and find the rightful heir, you have to find hidden objects in all the different game scenes. You get to use tools such as an X-ray scanner, flashlight, fingerprint duster, and more, and each clue you find brings you closer to the right answer.

According to the game description, there are 30 different scenes, 12 different potential heirs to investigate, and more than 1,000 hidden objects to locate. That sounds like it would keep me occupied for a good, long time. I can’t wait to buy this game!

Jerry and I recently started getting into “airsoft guns“, which are essentially BB guns that shoot only plastic BBs. This happened when a friend gave Jerry an old Glock airsoft gun that he didn’t use anymore. Jerry ended up loving that thing, and bought a new Glock airsoft within a few months.

I thought the Glock was pretty fun, so now I want my own gun. The thing is, I want an M.E.U. Pistol from Tokyo Marui, but I can’t find it anywhere! There are a few websites that list the M.E.U. among their inventory, but further inquiries revealed that everything was backordered. Man, finding a new M.E.U. pistol is proving to be as tough as finding cerebral palsy lawyers. What’s up with that? I should have had this gun in my hands a long time ago!

Anyway, I haven’t given up just yet. I’ve got a couple of leads on stores that don’t have websites but that probably have the gun in stock. If they take phone orders, I’ll be good to go. I’m keeping my fingers crossed here!

I have two teenage cousins who are beginning to experience the early stages of acne. They’re getting oily skin, clogged pores, blackheads, and a few scattered pimples here and there. Both of them (boys, by the way) are understandably freaking out, and are asking about what kind of skincare regimen they should be following.

I think it’s important to try to nip this problem in the bud, so I’ve convinced their dad (my uncle) to take them to the dermatologist for a checkup. Then they can ask the doctor to recommend a cleanser and the best acne treatments so the boys can start taking care of their skin properly.

I know a few discount online beauty supply shops where they can buy their soaps and moisturizers. I’m going to pass that info along later so they can save money on all this stuff.

Seeing my cousins go through this brings back memories of my own teenage skincare battles — battles that are still going on even in my mid-thirties. I sure hope the boys fare better than I did!

I’m a total junk food addict, and even though I’ve been committed to a healthier lifestyle recently, I simply can’t give up my crunchy snacks like potato chips, pretzels, and so forth. I also like to try new snack foods every once in a while, which for me usually means opting for a “gourmet” brand that’s a bit more expensive than the usual stuff from Frito Lay or Ruffle’s. Yesterday, I tried a bag of Kettle Chips brand New York Cheddar with Herbs.

The Kettle Chips brand has been around for a long time, and I’ve seen them forever, but I don’t think I’ve ever had them before. Well, I know that I haven’t bought them myself, but it’s possible that I’ve had them at a party or something. At any rate, due to the higher price, I was expecting them to be outstanding.

Unfortunately, they tasted pretty much like other chips to me. In fact, these Kettle Chips actually tasted greasier than other brands I’ve had — to the point where I could only eat half of a 2 oz. bag before feeling a bit queasy. Plus, the chips had that extremely unappetizing brownish tint (as opposed to more of a golden color) that I can’t stand in my potato chips. Maybe this is normal for kettle-style chips (I have no idea), but I don’t like the coloring at all. Here’s a photo of what I’m talking about. I know it looks like the coloring might be from the cheddar flavoring, but I assure you it’s not. My camera just doesn’t do the details justice.

The New York Cheddar with Herbs flavor itself is pretty good. I’m not sure how New York Cheddar is different from other cheddar, but whatever. It’s just too bad that this taste wasn’t strong enough to mask the generally oily flavor.

Overall, I was unimpressed with Kettle Chips New York Cheddar with Herbs, and doubt that I will ever buy this or any other flavor from this brand again.

One thing I absolutely hate when shopping online is when web retailers don’t offer enough payment options. For instance, tonight I was all set to buy a cool t-shirt that I wanted, only to discover that the merchant wasn’t set up to accept credit card payments. What?? Are you kidding me? How hard is it to sign up with authorize.net to be able to process those types of transactions?

Needless to say, I canceled the order and ended up not buying anything from that site. What a bummer, because I really wanted that shirt — and I saw a bunch of other things on the site that I probably would have bought in the future.

Oh, well. I’m sure I can easily find other stores that carry the shirt. I don’t know how that other website is going to feel about losing customers though!

I usually don’t buy used DVDs, but when I was at Blockbuster today, I decided to look through the bargain bin to see if they had anything good. That’s when I found Mindhunters, a film that I saw several months ago and ended up liking more than I thought I would.

Mindhunters is about a group of FBI profilers-in-training who go to a secluded location near the Outer Banks for an intensive week-long practice session. Once on the island, their communication with the rest of the world is cut off, and they won’t be able to make it back to civilization until the training chopper comes back in seven days.

Things go south almost immediately, as the would-be profilers stumble upon a real dead body. And then a second. And a third. Someone on the island is murdering members of the group, and they must find out who it is before the killer gets to all of them.

The plot is very similar to a blatant ripoff of And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie, but I still liked it. Plus, the DVD was just $3, so I couldn’t go wrong with that price!

I like to check out the Victoria’s Secret website every once in a while because sometimes they have great pants and suits for work or an evening out. When I was browsing the site today, I came across the FUGLIEST pair of pants I’ve ever seen! They’re called “high-waist trousers”, and I think they look absolutely ridiculous! Even if I had the waistline to wear these pants (which I admittedly don’t), I think I’d look dumb in them. Heck, the model looks dumb in these pants, so I can’t imagine anyone else pulling off the look.

Yikes, let’s hope this doesn’t become the next trend in pants, because… ewww!

I’ve stressed this point before, but it’s so important that I want to mention it again. In this day and age, there’s no reason to stick with a bad car insurance policy that forces you to pay high premiums or huge deductions before seeing a cent from the insurer.

Sure, in the past it was a difficult, time-consuming process to get quotes and compare rates, but not anymore. Now that consumers can shop for car insurance online, there’s no excuse for paying more than you absolutely have to. I’ve changed insurance carriers four times in the past five years, and have lower premiums now than I ever have before.

If you’re looking for a way to free up some cash in your household budget, then I suggest periodically reviewing your auto insurance policy and comparing your premiums to others that are available. You might be surprised at how much money you can save this way!