Illegally Sighted

New Must Have iPhone App: iMagnify

: Image via Wikipedia

I was browsing through an iPhone forum the other day looking for cool new apps to try out when I found what I feel is the Holy Grail of iPhone apps for low vision users. Those of you who have low vision realize how hard it is to carry around so much stuff on a daily basis. You have your phone, wallet, glasses, magnifying glass, monoculer, and countless other gadgets that help you manage everyday life. Well I’ve found a way to knock at least one of those things off your list of bag essentials.

The program is called iMagnify. It uses the camera function to turn the iPhone into a magnifying glass. You can zoom in up to 4 times the original size.

I’ve been using the program for the past couple of days and I am truly amazed at the functionality of it. I’ve been in dark restaurants, bright bus stops and just at home and have had great results with the program.

The only issue I could possibly find is sometimes you need to have a steady hand while focusing in on what you want to magnify. I noticed that I had to up the magnification to the max to read some fine print as well. These are typical issues of magnification devices including portable CCTVs.

The app is pretty cheap too! It costs around .99 to $1.99. It can fit into anyone’s budget and is well worth paying for in my opinion.

Girl Talk Thursday – Roommates!

They say that you don’t know someone until you’ve lived with them. I don’t know who “They” are but I know they’re definitely right.

I’ve had my share of roommates. Some of them have been a pleasure to live with while some have been a nightmare to live with. It’s super hard when you think you know someone then move in with them to find out they are raving lunatics. I don’t mean raving like ranting I mean raving as in “Let’s dress up like we’re rainbow Brite rejects and eat E all night long while we blast happy hardcore remixes of our favorite 80’s cartoon songs at full volume.” Yeah, that kind of raving.

Back in 2002 I lived in a little apartment near my parent’s house. It was my first apartment of my own since moving out of my ex’s apartment in 98 (which is another story for another time.) The place wasn’t super luxurious or anything. As a mater of fact it bordered on super ghetto status. I lived there by myself for a year before a friend of mine asked me a favor. Her best friend needed a place to stay because shegot kicked out of her boyfriend’s house. I’d known both girls for years and I should have known better but, being the good friend I was i HAD to help.

The chaos started almost immediately. I had to move my things out of the living room so that “she could have a space of her own.” This space was my freaking LIVING ROOM! The place wit hthe TV, stereo and the internet connection (since I wasn’t cool enough to have DSL or cable yet.) It went on from there. All nighters, loud techno music, random people at the house all the time. It just kept going.

Finally when I went on vacation to Illinois with some friends it was the last straw. I kept getting crank called by them because they were high and drunk, probably bored. Talking about how they brought her hamster over and it was pooping everywhere. When I got home from the trip I came home to find my bedroom door locked and the “roommate” in there with some guy…ON MY BED!!. So I was certainly done.

I left the house to run errands after kicking them out of my room (and burning the bedding.) When I came back I brought ALL of my friends and family with me to have a movie night. I came in and turned off their music by stopping the CD player and chucking the CD out the door. i popped in some really sappy chick flick and we all proceeded to get very drunk and talk a whole lot of mess.

They left that night and we thought they wouldn’t be back. I took that point to empty my house of all of their things. I put it all in the garage and told them they could schedule a time with me to pick it up. They tried to spout all of this Landmark Furum (cult brainwashing BS.) at me and I laughed and continued to watch them load their things into their truck.

I’ve talked to the girl who originally asked me to help her friend a few times since and she’s realized that the situation was never a good idea. I’ve still never been paid for phone bills and things that were broken while they stayed there.

I’ve had other roommates since then, all with their own crazy stories. But I’ll save those for another time. Too much drama in a day can be hazardous to your health!

Putting My Goals Into Motion By Making Extra Money

OK so that sounds like the spammiest of titles but I swear on my iPhone it’s not! I am just extremely excited about the ways in which I am funding my future goals. I am currently living with family members. We’re mutually helping one another out with finances right now. My goal is to get back on my feet and get into an apartment again, on my own, not living with other people. This takes time and money. I don’t have much of either but I’ve been doing a couple of side jobs that will help me realize these goals a little faster.

The first thing I have been doing is doing transcription for a company called Quicktate. Basically, what you’re doing is transcribing voice mail messages. The pay isn’t amazing but it does add up. There are times when the volume is high and times when it’s not so much. You’ve just got to stay in contact with them and they’ll tell you when there is a heavy demand.

You have to fill out an application then follow the steps in the email that you are sent to apply. After you do the steps there’s a test you have to pass. It took awhile from the time I filled out the application to the time i got the email but after that I got through everything pretty fast.

You can sign up for Quicktate by going here.

Another egg in my work at home basket is KGB_! I am loving this one as well. It’s a service where you can text a question to a certain number and you will get an answer back to your question. I’m a Special Agent with them so I answer all kinds of questions. It’s really fun work and you get to work on your Google-fu skills! Again the pay isn’t super exciting but every little bit helps!

To apply you have to first pass a trivia test. They then put you through a few levels of Special Agent training to see if you have what it takes. It took me about 2 weeks to get though the whole thing. You can apply here. l

I’ll continue to post opportunities like this one. I think everyone could use a little extra cash flow.

50 Questions For A Saturday.

: Image by [ r ♥ c e y t ♥ y ] {I br♥ke for bokeh} via Flickr

Wow! This takes me back to my Live Journal and My Space days. I stole this 50 Questions thing from A Lil Enchanted. I LOVE this blog it’s on my read list. I suggest you check it out.

1. Where were you three hours ago?
Sleeping peacefully. Wish I could still be doing that!

2. Who are you in love with?
Currently I’m not “In Love” with anyone. I love my friends and family.

3. Have you ever eaten a crayon?
I don’t think so. I may have as a kid but if something tasted gross I tended not to eat it.

4. Is there anything pink within 10 feet of you?
Yes, a bag from Torrid that has parts of a Halloween costume in it.

5. When was the last time you went to the mall?
When I purchased said Halloween costume.

6. Are you wearing socks right now?
Indeed not. It’s too hot here to wear socks!!!

7. Do you have a car worth over $2000?
No. I don’t own a car. Can’t see well remember?

8. When was the last time you drove out of town?
I don’t drive. This would be a hugely bad idea and I wouldn’t recommend it.

9. Have you been to the movies in the last 5 days?
Nope not since last month actually.

10. Are you hot?
As far as temperature not at the moment. If you’re talking about my looks then, YES. I’m a Hot Goddess woman!

11. What was the last thing you had to drink?
Coffee…mmmmmm coffee.

12. What are you wearing right now?
Black and white polka dotted jammies. I love them!

13. Do you wash your car or let the car wash do it?
Considering I am carless I will just say I don’t wash it.

14. Last food you ate?
Carne asada fries last night. For those who don’t know there is this delicious thing that is like nachos but all on top of french fries!!! SO GOOD! But, it’s hella fattening.

15. Where were you last week at this time?
Scrambling to get things together to head to my friend’s surprise birthday party!

16. Have you bought any clothing items in the last week?
No but I did go loca at Lane Bryant 2 weeks ago and got $400 worth of clothes and chonies for $100!

17. When was the last time you ran?
Yesterday. Well, it was more like jogging but that’s running to me!

18. What was the last sporting event you watched?
Haha…..Hahaha….hahahahahahahahaha!!! Sports? Me? I usually only watch hockey and only if it’s a live event that I’m attending.

19. Your favorite animal?
Cats… lil black ones especially. <——- Me too!!!

20. Your dream vacation?
I want to just go on tour, you know, like a rock star. I want to go to New Orleans, New York, Puerto Rico, back through to Florida, then Hawaii. Then I want to take off for England, Ireland, Spain and Italy.

21. Last person’s house you were in?
Besides mine? Probably my friend’s house last weekend to go to the surprise party.

22. Worst injury you ever had?
Hurt my back and neck in a car wreck probably 15 years ago… still bothers me

23. Have you been in love?
Yes I kinda miss it too.

24. Do you miss anyone right now?
Yes i miss all my family that’s living in Indiana.

25. Last play you saw? I don’t even remember.

26. What is your secret weapon to lure the opposite sex?
Hahaha it’s no secret they’re attached to the front of my body and look really good in a v or scoop neck top!

27. What are your plans for tonight?
Tonight? No idea. Today I will be crafting with friends.

28. Who is the last person to send you a Myspace message or comment?
Wow, I don’t really use Myspace much anymore. I think it was some random dude.

29. Next trip you are going to take?
Well hopefully to Vegas again soon.

30. Ever go to camp?
Sure. Camp Bloomfield when I was a teenager. I went to Camp Edwards when i was a kid and I went to an outdoor education camp when I was a kid too…don’t remember what that camp’s name was.

31. Were you an honor student in school?
Well that’s a funny one!!! Nope. I preferred ditching school to go see bands play at the college.

32. What do you want to know about the future?
Not much.

33. Are you wearing perfume or cologne?
Nope I just woke up a lil bit ago.

34. Are you due sometime this year for a doctor’s visit?
Probably.

35. Where is your best friend?
Right at the moment she’s probably doing school work.

36. How is your best friend?
Why don’t ya ask her yourself!

37. Do you have a tan?
A light one from being outside taking public transportation.

38. What are you listening to right now?
The fan and some person doing yard work.

39. Do you collect anything?
Tarot decks, anything w/ skulls or faeries. Not much of a collector anymore. I am trying to GET RID of stuff.

40. Who is the biggest gossiper you know?
I refuse to answer this because she knows who she is and it’s annoying!

41. Last time you got stopped by a cop or pulled over?
Me personally? I haven’t been in a LONG time.

42. Have you ever drank your soda from a straw?
yeah and?

43. What does your last text message say?
“Sounds good ”

44. Do you like hot sauce?
Only Tapatio and i only like that on my Frito’s chips with lime.

45. Last time you took a shower?
This morning.

46. Do you need to do laundry?
Yes! I need to keep on top of that actually. It can get out of hand.

47. What is your heritage?
My family is a huge mix of stuff. Irish, French, German, Native American. That’s just a start.

48. Are you someone’s best friend?
Yep!

49. Are you rich?
No I’m Amber, pleased to meet you!

50. What were you doing at 12 AM last night?
Playing on Pogo.

Call Me A Freebie Junkie

“I can’t wait to find the next one!”

“Just one more then I’ll go cook dinner!”

“I can stop whenever I want to!”

Does this sound like you? Well ya better face it you’re hooked…on freebies!

For me, it started when I was in grade school. My best friend and I would call the 800 numbers that were on TV. They lured you in with their promises of a free sample or a free coupon. We spent hours looking through our comic books, magazines and cereal boxes for free stuff. It was so exciting!

When the mail came it was like Christmas! Little boxes and envelopes with our names on them. They were just begging to be opened! We’d open whatever it was, mess with it for awhile then forget about it. We’d move on to our next treasure with wide eyes and excited laughter.

To this day I still get like that when something comes to me for free!

I have a freebie for you today that will give you a happy AND be useful!

It’s Swag Bucks! OK, right now you may be thinking “Not another referral site/search site/craptacular waste of time.”But it’s not by any means any of those things!

Basically you are getting paid to search. But, the cool thing is you can actually redeem these “Swag Bucks” for real rewards. THey have Amazon gift cards, cards for Starbucks, game shops, online things and so manyother choices. All you do is use their search engine and you win the Swag Bucks.

I’ve actually gotten a couple Amazon cards and they have been put towards some of my workout dupplies and videos!

The easiest way to win is just to set it as your search engine. If you don’t like it of course you can go back to your favorite search engine later. Just have your family do all their searches with SwagBucks engine and start earning those gift cards.

So sign up today and you seriously will NOT be sorry! I’m sure not I love it!

Keeping You In Suspense

I have got some great news!!!

We have 1 more winner in the uPrinting 500 Business Card Giveaway!

Martha! You have also won the 500 Business Card Giveaway. I’ll be getting in contact with you as well!

Congratulations to both of the winners!

“How Do You Do Your Makeup if You Can’t See Well?”

: Image via Wikipedia

As silly as this question sounds to me there are many people who ask me just that. When I explain to them that I have a vision impairment people usually chime in with that particular phrase.

I’ve never really given a good response though. I end up saying Üh…I don’t know…I just do.”It’s worked since high school and if it ain’t broke…well you understand.

But today I will reveal my mystical secret. The holy grail of makeup tips geard especially for the visually impaired. OK maybe not. It’s really not that mystical, there’s no magic involved. As a matter of fact it’s so easy even a kid could do it (and that is the total truth!)

I do it mostly by feel.

When I put on my eyeshadow I just do the 3 shade lid/crease/browbone basic look. I know that the lightest color goes up top, darkest goes in the middle and the medium color goes on the lid. I use the correct brush for each step and most days it comes out fabulous!

I love me some eyeliner so I HAD to learn how to use it. I don’t look in the mirror to apply it though. I just follow the line of my eye! It’s really simpleI put my pinky on the bottom lashline where Iam going to line and I have the eyeliner follow my finger. Perfect application every time! Liquid liner is one I have yet to master and I don’t know that I will ever master it. If anyone has suggestions I’d love to hear them!

Mascara gets difficult because many times I get those little black dots where the wand has accidentally touched my skin. Nothing unfixable though. I just put the wand at the base of my lashes and brush.

I’m not even going to explain lipstick. That’s totally obvious.

Foundation, however, is a bit tricky. First I have to go to a makeup counter or store to find my foundation because i like to have someone match me with the best foundation for my skin. I then take my foundation brush (yes they have them and they are wonderful) and I put dots of foundation at the edges of my face and blend blend blend! Then I fill in the rest of my face and blend that in. Perfect every time!

So now I’ve told you the real big secret of my existance. I think now that I’ve told ya Ima have to kill ya! No just kidding share this wonderful secret with everyone. As a matter of fact file it away for yourself. You never know when the power might go out and you will still have to put makeup on to go to work!

Yes I know, I’m a rockstar…or not it depends on my mood!

…and the Winner Is…

AIMEE W!!!
Your name was chosen by the handy dandy random.org random number generator!
She is the lucky winner of the business card giveaway! I will be contacting you after I’ve gotten in touch with uPrinting and we’ll set up getting you your code for your FREE BUSINESS CARDS!!!

School and work have kept me mighty busy. I have a butt ton of stuff to blog about so please stay tuned!

Recipe of the Day – Low Cal Beef Stroganoff

I’ve been following a diet and workout plan over at Spark People. I’m in a couple different weight loss challenges over there to get me motivated. One of my challenges this week was to prepare this recipe for low cal beef stroganoff. I was super skeptical at first. I am not the best cook and I’m afraid anything I make is gonna explode the kitchen or taste like i scraped it off my shoe. I know this is never the case (except in the peanutbutter cookies of doom last Christmas where i used old crisco EWWW) Today I was so pleasantly surprised I almost did flips in my kitchen. I know this could have given me a workout but we have a tiny kitchen.

My Dad even loved this recipe and he is super picky ëverything needs more salt and pepper”man.

So here is the recipe. I have decided you can omit the potato and supbstitute shirataki noodles in their place to drastically lessen the calories. I’m doing that tomorrow for lunch with the leftovers. This recipe serves 2 and I doubled everything to make it for 4. I had to thicken up the mixture with a teeny of flour but if you just use a little less of the broth you shouldn’t have a problem.

Beef & Vegetable Stroganoff-Topped Potato

Start to Finish: 25 mins
Makes: 2 svgs. (svg size= ½ potato & 1 ½ cups stroganoff)

1 medium baking potato
1 tsp. olive oil
4oz. beef flank steak, cut across grain into thin bite-size strips
1c. sliced fresh mushrooms
½ tsp. garlic powder (I used minced garlic b/c we’re garlic fiends!)
1/8 tsp. pepper
1 can Progresso Light Savory Vegetable Barley Soup (18.5oz.)
¼c. fat-free sour cream
2 tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
1 small onion

1. Generously pierce potato with fork. Place on microwavable paper towel. Microwave on High 4-5 minutes, turning once, until tender. Cover, let stand covered 5 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, in 12-inch nonstick skillet, heat oil over high heat. Add beef, mushrooms and onion; sprinkle with garlic powder and pepper. Cook 5-7 minutes, stirring frequently., just until beef is browned and vegetables begin to soften.

3. Stir in soup. Heat to boiling. Cook uncovered over high heat for 7-10 minutes, stirring frequently, until mixture thickens. Remove from heat; stir in sour cream.

4. To serve, place ½ potato on each serving plate. Top each with 1 ½ cups of beef mixture; sprinkle each with 1 tbsp. parsley.

PER SERVING:
330 CALORIES
9G FAT
3G SAT FAT
0G TRANS FAT
35MG CHOLESTEROL
880MG SODIUM
44G CARBS
7G FIBER
17G PROTEIN
1100MG POTASSIUM
*WW POINTS PER SVG: 7

Easy Ways To Keep Cool When You’re Broke

In Southern California, the weather starts getting extremely hot in August and September. It’s like summer is saying “Fine kiss my butt I’m leaving and gonna make ya miserable in the process.”OK well maybe not so much but it feels like it sometimes.

I live in a house without air conditioning. Oh, we have one of those window air units! The problem however, is that it was probably built in like 1965 or something and eats electricity like Pac Man eats power pellets!

So what’s a girl to do when she’s melting away on at the computer? Here are my picks for the top cheapo cool down methods! These are in no particular order…

Make a water baby! A friend of mine used to freeze water in a 2 liter bottle and wrap it in a towel or sheet. She called them “water babies” because they are snuggled close like you’re holding a baby.
Freeze up some grapes! You can even stick toothpicks in them and pretend they’re “grapecicles”
If you want to head outdoors, find a shaded park and go ice blocking! You need to find a park with a rather large hill and bring one of those big blocks of ice with you (which you can make yourself if you want by freezing water in a small plastic tub. You sit on the ice blok and slide down the hill. It’s a real bum chiller!
Make salad for dinner. Why heat up the house when it’s unreasonably hot? Put together a huge salad with your favorite veggies, cheese, dressing and whatever else. Cold chicken that’s already been prepared or prepackaged can be thrown in if you desire. It’s healthy and keeps you cool!
Use the kiddie pool. Those of you who have kidlets probably have a small “kiddie pool” that you put the kids in during the summer. Well, if they’re not using it (and even if they are!) fill it on up and at least dunk your feet in. Make yourself a “grown up drink” if you want and sit in a shady part of your yardo r patio.
Get Misty With it! Get a water spray bottle and put some ice and cold water in. When you feel like you’re gonna melt spray yourself. Those with cats will find it amusing to see the cat scurry away thinking they’re gonna get in trouble for something!

Question – What are your cheapo cool down tips?

New Must Have iPhone App: iMagnify

Girl Talk Thursday – Roommates!

Putting My Goals Into Motion By Making Extra Money

50 Questions For A Saturday.

Call Me A Freebie Junkie

Keeping You In Suspense

“How Do You Do Your Makeup if You Can’t See Well?”

…and the Winner Is…

Recipe of the Day – Low Cal Beef Stroganoff

Easy Ways To Keep Cool When You’re Broke

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