The AllAmerican RunnerDuck Review, a newsletter for friends and family 09-27-02

September 27, 2002

WELCOME BACK: Holy cow!! What a first week of fall we have had here in Western Washington. There has been nothing but sun with temperatures in the low 70's (F) every day. We've had a fantastic summer and now the fall continues this trend. I know you people in southern California are saying it's too cold and what's the big deal any how? I was in LA a few years ago in January and as I walked out of my hotel I couldn't help but notice the blue skies and sunshine. After all I hadn't seen the sun for four months. I was walking up to strangers and commenting on the wonderful day. They would just look at me as though I were nuts but then they didn't know I was from Seattle. The thing is here in Washington we know great weather and really appreciate it when it happens. It won't be long and gray skies and drizzle will fill the weeks and months. It's hard to believe that September is already over and Tuesday starts October. As always we will post a new monthly recipe on our web site at www.runnerduck.com/rdcook.htm. In case you haven't noticed we have a recipe box on our web site that has all the recipes that we've posted in our newsletters and on our Cooking web page. You can use our search box to look for any recipe based on title, ingredients or just about anything else. We received an email from one of our readers asking if this was a business or what? In one way that was a compliment because that means that we are doing a fairly professional job at this newsletter stuff. On the other hand we are trying to make a couple of bucks but then isn't everyone. What we really want to do is establish a network of friends and provide them some usable information. If you are kind enough to go to our affiliate sites and buy something that you need then we really appreciate that. We try to find affiliates that we've had good experiences with and that have fair prices. The list to the right is just a sampling of what we have on our web site. If you haven't checked out our shopping mall then we'd encourage you to give it a try the next time you are looking for something. We appreciate it and we hope that we've done you a favor also. ANOTHER WINNER! We held a contest a few weeks ago and Peggy R., the winner, never replied to our email so as promised we've drawn another winner. Lets see if Telitha Ann R. will accept one of our wonderful gifts. We are offering her a RunnerDuck T-shirt or mug from the RunnerDuck Goodies Store. We'll be having more contests in the future and we always give away a prize so stay tuned. Ron Godin has been busy with all the arts and crafts fairs that are going on but he still has time to make a special sign for you. His rustic Adirondack art is really something to see. Just go to www.runnerduck.com/crafts.htm and see what he has for you. You are logged on to this newsletter as [[-Email-]] and receiving it because you are a friend of mine or a friend of theirs. If you would like to be removed from receiving this newsletter just send an email to unsubscribe@runnerduck.com leaving the Subject and Body blank. Thank you, Ken and Marilyn VISIT OUR HOME PAGE AT www.runnerduck.com Check Out Archive Newsletters Here	Please visit our affiliate sites listed below. Your purchases help us keep this newsletter going. Thank you!

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What's New This Week? We're in the hunt for a new pickup truck. I know it was only about a year ago that we got our wonderful, low mileage, 1994 Ford F150. Well it turns out that it is just too underpowered to pull our trailer the way we'd like. It puts too much of a load on the truck and we are afraid that we'll wear it out too fast.
     What we've narrowed it down to is a Ford F250 with the new Triton V10, 6.8 Liter, engine. We figure that this will get us down the road for a long time to come. We haven't found the exact truck yet but when we do we'll post a picture so you'll know what to look for when we are out camping. It's always fun when one of our readers comes by to say hi.
     Ken here. I was apprehensive about the physical therapy that I would have to under go with Broonhilda the monster from torture hell but it turns out the Danielle is very skilled at making improvements without inducing too much pain. She manages the Physiotherapy Associates facility in Kirkland, Washington and does a very nice job. While I was there this week she showed me a little newsletter that she puts out on health tips. It discusses things associated with the physiology of the skeletal/muscular parts of the body. With kids now back in school I thought we'd share her comments on kids and backpacks.
     A study led by Shelley Goodgold, PT, found that 55 percent of the children surveyed carried backpack loads heavier then 15 percent of their body weight, the maximum safe weight for children recommended by most experts.
     Injury can occur when a child, in trying to adapt to a heavy load, uses harmful postures such as arching the back, leaning forward or, if only one strap is used, leaning to one side.
     These postural adaptations can cause spinal compression and/or improper alignment, and may hamper the proper functions of the discs between the vertebrae that provide shock absorption.
     Check the weight of your child's back pack and make sure that they are able to carry it without damaging their body.
     Next week we will continue on with this discussion and give you some tips for safe backpack use.

DigiTalk

     We talked about rechargeable batteries for digital cameras and other equipment some time ago but with school in full swing there will probably be a lot more pictures take. There is nothing more frustrating than to take your camera to an event only to have you batteries go dead after the first picture. We hope these few tips will help prevent that from happening.
     First make sure your batteries are charged before leaving the house, DA! A lot of people have been lead to believe that batteries have a memory so you must completely discharge them before recharging them. Well some of the old lithium batteries were that way but most of today's NiMH (nickel metal hydride) batteries do not have a memory and you can top them off.
     Second get a couple sets of batteries or more. Keep them all charged and you'll never run low. I always put a green rubber band around the charged batteries and a red rubber band around the dead batteries that I've just taken out of the camera. That way you always know what ones need charging.
     Third keep the batteries warm. Put them in a pocket next to your body. Cold batteries discharge much faster than warm ones.
     Finally get out there and take a ton of digital pictures. It is so easy to delete the ones you don't like and keep just those really special ones.

SITE OF THE WEEK

How's your Internet connection? Does it seem pretty fast or awfully slow? If you are not sure then this week's site should help you out. I ran a test on my computer and it gave me a rating of "Fantastic" with my DSL line. That sure did make me feel good. I had my brother Ron run the same test on his 56K modem out in the woods of Northern California and he did not fair so well. He got a rating of "Poor". Sorry bro!
To see how you are doing just go to Bandwidth Place, http://bandwidthplace.com and give it a try. It's free and you might just learn something out about your connection.

MARILYN'S CORNER

(Gift Project)

Cookie Gift Box

Click on picture for bigger view.
This is a two part project. The first part is making the gift box and the second part is making the cookies we have over in our free recipe column.

Here's what you'll need:

Balsa wood band box. You can get these at most any craft store and they are really cheap.
Tacky glue.
Coffee Beans.
Acrylic wood stain.

Spread tacky glue all over the top of the lid for the box.
Place coffee beans all over the top. You can add more glue and pile them up a little bit.
Stain the sides of the box bottom.
Put the cookies you baked in the box and your gift is ready to give.

This is a very simple project but you won't believe how the eyes of the person you give it to light up.

We really hope you enjoy Marilyn's Corner and look forward to all the fun things she brings you each week. If you have a fun project that would be suitable for our newsletter we'd love to share it with our readers. Just contact marilyn@runnerduck.com and we'll do the rest.

Remember we have all of our past projects archived on our web site at www.runnerduck.com. Just click on the Projects or Kids Only Eggs.

Sometimes when I see the neat things for kids these days I wish I were a whole lot younger. This week we are offering you LeapPad. This talking book comes with an interactive "magic pen" that works like a hand-held computer mouse pointer. Children can opt to turn the paper pages and listen to the story read with different voices for each character. Or they can interrupt the read-aloud session to play with the magic pen (permanently attached with a wire). They can point the pen tip to any word on a page and hear it pronounced, or touch a picture and hear a sound effect (such as "Strike one!" for the baseball bat). Very similar to the popular Living Books computer games, this 10-by-11-inch book is more portable than a home computer. Stories in this set include Lil's Loose Tooth, Richard Scarry's Best Word Book Ever, and Winnie the Pooh in A Sweet Good Morning. The set also includes a paper piano keyboard and map and human anatomy games. --Gail Hudson
You can get LeapPad for only $49.99 which includes free shipping.

Also, be sure and visit the
RunnerDuck Toy Store.

The Tempos News and CD of the Week

The Tempos continue without me. Every week the band practices at a local school music room. This helps keep their chops finely tuned when we are not performing. I'm sure that once I'm back in the saddle it will sound a lot better but for now it's good for them to practice sectionals with out all the noise of the drums.
Don't forget that The Tempos big swing band is available for hire. If you have a special event that could use the wonderful music of a classic big band be sure to contact The Tempos at thetempos@runnerduck.com.

We were watching a movie the other night and noticed the distinct sounds of Randy Newman on the sound track. He's one of those artists' who's music just makes you fell good. Because of that movie I just had to go out and find a Randy Newman CD. His most recent recording is "The Best of Randy Newman" and has all of your favorites. If you want to feel good I'd highly recommend this CD to add to your collection.
You can get "The Best of Randy Newman" this week for only $13.99. That's $3.99 (22%)off the regular price.

CONSERVATION TIP

There is still some growing time left for some of your plants but they do not require as much water this time of the year as in the spring or summer. We'd suggest cutting back on your watering by at least half unless you have some really hot dry days. Water seems to be harder and harder to come by so every little bit you can save will help in the long run. I know it's hard for you folks in New Orleans to imagine a water shortage this week but it is happening.

If you have a conservation tip please send it to conservation@runnerduck.com and we'll post it in our newsletter.

The RunnerDuck Goodies Store

Check out our cool polo shirt at the RunnerDuck Goodies Store. There are lots of other neat RunnerDuck items also.

THIS WEEKS FREE RECIPE
Chocolate Mocha Drop Cookies

These are the cookies that you are supposed to make to go into the project box you made over in Marilyn's column. You know the one with coffee beans on top. Mocha, coffee beans, you get it right? Anyhow these taste really great and will make a great gift. Make a double batch so you can keep some for yourself.

2 Cups Flour

1/2 Cup Shortening

1 Cup Brown Sugar

1/2 Cup Cocoa Powder

1 Egg

2 teaspoons Baking Powder

2 Tablespoons Instant Coffee Granules

3/4 Cup Milk

1/2 Cup Chopped Nuts (optional)

Mix all the ingredients together.
Drop a rounded Tablespoon of mix onto a greased cookie sheet.
Bake at 375 degrees F for 8 - 10 minutes.
Make a basic chocolate butter cream frosting and add 1 Tablespoon of Instant Coffee Granules.
Make a cookie sandwich by spreading the frosting on the flat side of one cookie and putting another cookie on top.
Put the cookies into the box you made and give them to someone special.

Remember, if you have a recipe you'd like to share please send it to marilyn@runnerduck.com.

Every month we post a new recipe on our web page. If you haven't done so yet, check out our September recipe at the RunnerDuck Kitchen Store. We'd be happy to post your favorite recipe there or in our newsletter and give you credit. Just drop a line to marilyn@runnerduck.com

COOKBOOK
SUGGESTION OF THE WEEK

This weeks cookbook "All About Cookies" is part of the "Joy of Cooking" series which includes such favorites as "All About Breakfast and Brunch", "All About Pasta and Noodles" and "All about Grilling" just to name a few. These easy to follow cookbooks are filled with great ideas and really tasty recipes. We hope you order and enjoy this week's selection.
Click HERE or on the picture above for "All About Cookies".

Be sure and visit the RunnerDuck Cookbook Store for other great savings on cookbooks and cooking supplies.

The RunnerDuck web site is hosted by

If you are looking for a great hosting service at a terrific price check them out at www.fastwirenetwork.com. If you mention that you heard about them from RunnerDuck you will get a $5.00 per month "Duck Discount" for as long as you have your account.

PROJECTS

Spool Wall Clock

This project comes from Marilyn's folks Betty and Frank who had this great idea to display old spools. It takes a little creativity and planning ahead but the results are very rewarding. You don't have to use spools. You can use wine corks or any other collectable that you think might look nice. We are just trying to give you an idea and you can take it from there.

Click on the picture for a bigger view

Here's what you'll need:

A piece of wood large enough for your clock face and spools. Ours is 16" X 30".

1/2" X 1 1/2" for the edges.

Decorative molding.

A clock mechanism. You can find these in most woodworking shops or at Rockler.com, Mieselwoodhobby.com, just to name a couple.

Wood Spools

Glue

Nails

Varnish

Brown Felt

Design your project based on the number of spools and type of clock mechanism. This clock used a pendulum so it is fairly tall.
Arrange the spools in a pattern that covers half of the clock. You might want to take a digital picture of the arrangement so you can remember how you had it later.
Cut the spools in half using a fine tooth hand saw or band saw. Be careful if you clamp the spools to cut them because the edges can break off quite easily.
Cut the face of your clock to size. If it will have a pendulum make an opening for that also.
Mount the 1/2" X 1 1/2" border around the clock. You can butt join the corners but miters always look nicer.

Corner Detail
Cut your molding to go around the border. These corners need to be mitered since they show the most.
Install your clock and clock face.
Glue the spool halves onto the face in an interesting pattern.
We have a piece of felt stretched across the back behind the pendulum. You could use a piece of wood but we really like the flat, dull look of the felt.
Apply varnish over the whole project. You might want to remove the clock mechanism before you varnish.
Install a bracket for hanging your creation and you should be good to go.

Get creative and make your clock as big or as small as you like. Look around for interesting items that you might use for the clock face. You could even add toys for a child's room. The important thing is to have fun with this project and then enjoy the rewards an interesting project you created with your own hands.

It will still be a couple of weeks before Ken is allowed to run a table saw and other power tools so if you have a project you'd like to share we sure would appreciate it. If you have a project that you would like to share please drop us a line and we'll help get it published in the RunnerDuck review. We are looking for woodworking, gardening, crafts and kids projects so send us your thoughts at projects@runnerduck.com.

JOKE OF THE WEEK

While enjoying an early morning breakfast in a northern Arizona cafe, four elderly ranchers were discussing everything from cattle, horses, and weather to how things used to be in the "good old days." Eventually the conversation moved on to their spouses. One gentleman turned to the fellow on his right and asked, "Roy, aren't you and your bride celebrating your 50th wedding anniversary soon?"
"Yup, we sure are," Roy replied.
"Well, are you gonna do anything special to celebrate?" another man asked.
The old gentleman pondered this for a moment, then replied, "For our 25th anniversary, I took Bea to Tucson. Maybe for our 50th, I'll go down there and get her."

Until Next Time...

When times get difficult like during rehabilitation most peoples spouses chip in and help out. Not all people are as well rounded as others at adapting to certain tasks. This friend of ours was recovering from a broken leg and asked her husband to put the clothes is the dryer. His comment was, "from where"? Needless to say she didn't get a lot of help from him.
If you have a friend or loved one that needs a helping hand, don't be afraid to jump in and help. They will really appreciate it and you'll feel better also!

If you want to talk about something just drop us a line any time, we like to talk about most anything. We are always looking for content for our newsletter so if you have something to add we'd love to publish it. Assuming it meets our strict family oriented requirements!

If you forward these newsletters to your friends just drop us a line and we'll do it for you. Just send us their email address and we'll do the rest. Remember, we never share our email list with anyone, period! Just drop me a line or go to our registration page and sign up your friend.

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