THIS SUCKS and this blows (but both in a really good way)

I admit that I waste a fair amount of money on crap.


I see some new kitchy novelty thing and before I can come to my senses it grabs my money out of my wallet, jumps in my bags and shows up at my house when I'm unpacking my wares.
The hands-free, battery operated can opener that drives itself around the rim of the can? Got it.
The Magic Bullet?  Mine. All mine. 
The upside-down tomato planter...sigh, two.
The George Foreman Grill? Check.
The VHS three-pack Tae Bo workout? I curse you Billy Banks! My abs are no better than before I popped for the $30.


In my defense...no matter how many commercials they crammed down my throat over the holidays last year - I have yet to purchase a Snuggie or a Shoedini. Apparently I still have some self control.


But today ... today I am here to applaud a couple of new gimmicks that I saw, I bought, and am here to proclaim are sheer genius.

First of all let's talk odor (and things that blow).

The little area that houses our kitty litter is an assault on every nasal cavity that enters the door going from our garage to our house. I keep it clean, too, in a nazi-crazed-obsessed kind of way but with a couple of cats doing their jobs it's a pretty big task and occasionally the box emits an odor that tends to linger.  The Air Wick Freshmatic air freshener helps my cause.

It's a little can of air freshener that sits in a case and squirts itself (meaning I don't even have to run out there and try to head off company by five minutes to 'freshen up' the entryway. It's being done continuously - I told you, genius). 

It runs off a little timer you can set to spray every 9, 18 or 36 minutes. I hit things a little heavy with the 9 minute interval but like I said it can get a little stinky.

Drawbacks to the device? Refills are a little pricey but I'm a coupon girl for the right items and I have found some that save a buck and a half.
Also - this is also the same area my washer and dryer are in and since the air freshener goes off randomly according to the timer I'll be honest here and admit that on occasion I've been sprayed in the chest, the elbow, and once, the right lens of my glasses. Just a little something to keep in mind.




The other item I love? (And things that suck)
The Space Bag Vacuum Seal Bags.

I have this lovely blue tote that I've kept in my closet for about a decade. I use it to change out my seasonal clothes. In the summer it houses my fleece jeans, fleece vests and pull over... well...fleece sweatshirts. (Hockey Mom). 

In the winter the tote keeps my tank tops shorts and capris nicely tucked away. But it's a big darned thing and as a self proclaimed pack rat (nay, not hoarder) I hold over way more clothes than I need to but that's for another post.

Anyway - The space bags caught my eye. And I bought a couple. I brought them home and I proceeded to use one for my summer clothes.


OH.
MY.
GOSH.
Some things really happen just like the commercial!! When I had every stitch of air sucked out of the plastic the pile had wilted before my very eyes. What once fit in that huge, blue, closet-hogging tote now slides under my bed. I started to cry.
I fell so in love with the bags that I bought more! And then, a couple more. And I proceeded to tour my home looking for things to vacuum pack.
My spare bedding takes up nary a foot of closet space now.


Just doing it is fun. Pack 'em full. Suck out the air. Lock. Repeat.
I have actually laid in bed a couple of nights thinking about things I could vacuum pack. Which might mean I've taken it a little too far.
If I'd have known about those bags back when we were moving hither and yon every couple of years I would have had our entire load that took a semi condensed to a red wagon.
The box says they're waterproof and reusable which makes them perfect. Hopefully I'll never have to test the waterproof part but the fact that I can use them again, I think, makes the cost and owning them justifiable. Although Kirk did make himself chuckle the night I showed him my teeny, tiny, summer wardrobe.
I know he was secretly mildly impressed but as he stared at the newly compact pile (in awe perhaps) he said, "I hope the cat puts a hole in that and it fills up with air and you can't get it out from under the bed." Nice.


As seen on TV - some of the items are laughable.
Some I'm not sure how I ever lived without.

Before I go...and because some of you have been asking...This is Miller.

He's been ours for almost a week. He's a fast learner, too, cuz' in that time he's learned to fetch, come and sit. 
We've already got things down to a routine, too.
He pees and poops and I clean it up.
Wait...a...second...I'm thinking vacuum pack?