Great thread! I wanted to comment on the exfoliation topic. I have a Mia that I use regularly but I recently added an Alpha hydroxy acid cream (10%) to my routine and I cannot believe how much smoother my skin feels! I wash my face at night with a washcloth and apply the cream to sleep. It is not expensive and I am so pleased with the results. My skin is so so smooth. I still use the Mia but in the shower in the morning. I used to use the scrubs but again, Alpha Hydroxy seems t work better and is my new best friend. I found this brand at TJ Maxx and will provide the link but any brand would be fine. It's the percentage concentration that matters. Check out the reviews. Here is a link that might be useful: Alpha Hydroxy Cream

Yayagal, The brunch was Friday and we saw the movie that night. Unfortunately, the movie showing we went to see was sold out, and the next show was in 3D. Ugh, i hate that sensation of stuff being thrown at you all the time. And Baz Luhrman (sp?) is over the top enough without all the over-the-top-ness of 3D. The combination gave the whole thing a Disney-esque feel to me, distracting and not appropriate to this tight little novella. I will say that the acting was very good. And I was pleased that the movie strayed very little from the novel, most of the dialogue was absolutely verbatim. My DH had an interesting observation, which was that all the parties were identical. All in all, very enjoyable. Newbuyer, Yes, people did. Unlike other themes, almost everybody has something that can read "flapper". It was fun. At the movie showing we went to, a bunch of teenagers were dressed as flappers. How wholesome, unless of course they had hip flasks, too. Thanks, Annie, it was! KSWL, Ahh, book clubs. I've been in this one since we moved here, and I would say it is the best I've been in yet. I have only run it a year, but I was lucky that my predecessor(s) ruled with an iron fist! The person who runs the club offers up two books each time, and everyone votes. Pseudo-democracy, like having to choose between Republicans and Democrats each time! We also had a planning meeting where I printed out long lists of prizewinners, recommended reading lists, etc, and we circled ones we thought we'd like. When we meet, I usually have questions printed out with me, to guide the discussion. I am most pleased that people always seem to have read the book. So we have a lot of fun, but people are serious too. We used to meet over tea and biscuits, but one meeting someone hosted with an elaborate tea and fingersandwich and scone meal. Since that we have ramped up the food part, so that my kids now ask me if it is my cooking club or my book club meeting? I have to think of a way to dial that back, since not everyone has the means or space or inclination to feed the group. We rotate meetings on a volunteer basis, and I am thinking in the future of designating some meetings as tea, and some as brunch, so that people don't have to go all out to host a meeting. I have been part of 4 or 5 clubs over the years. One, when I was first working, was with colleagues, and we only read classics. The host was charged with leading the discussion. One time I had to lead Moby Dick and am ashamed to say I bought the Cliffs Notes. One group chose to read "The Nanny Diaries" and, for me, that ended the group. I can't stand to read krap. My friend's husband is in a book club. They read Ulysses. Over and over again. It is all they read. For years now. LOL I'd love to hear about other people's book clubs and tips.

Oh, Annie, I was stylin' , lol! Everything was perfect--- threw in a dress at the last minute, gray swing dress, pull on overhead, acessorized with brown tights, scarf, brown flats ( which I threw in at the last min because the suitcase was so light!) and wore to the symphony and ballet. DD is in love with Prague and wants to go back ASAP, she liked it that much. I was in heaven in Munich, where I spent every available minute at the Pinakothek museums... The modern art one reopened the day we got there after a refurbishment/ reorganization.... Collectively they are my three fave art museums in the world! We stayed at the Kempinski on Maximillianstrasse, the one with the fab spa, which of course made the trip even more wonderful :-)

Based on the recs I bought one the other day, charged it up, and used it today on the stairs. I thought it did a good job. (it had been a good week since I vacuumed, DH has been on phone meetings most of the day and I hate to vacuum then) I did the stairs twice with the power brush and once with the crevice tool for the corners. While doing the baseboards in the hall the battery died. I was a little disappointed 15 minutes was its limit, but then I looked it up on Amazon and yes, that was about right. I look forward to using it in the car, upholstery, corners, where the litter box is, and of course the stairs! So much easier than plugging in the shark for quick, frequent jobs. I wish it had an easy way to store the accessories. This house was built before the Dustbuster so there are not a lot of outlets convenient for charging things like this. The filter had a lot of cat fur so I rinsed it and it's drying while the rest of the vacuum charges. I wonder if it will be worth it to get a second filter assembly?