Book review: Life in Spite of Me Living After a Suicide Attempt

FTC disclaimer:  I received a copy of the book from the publisher for review purposes.  All opinions are my own.  This post may contain affiliate links.

In the book Life, In Spite of Me: Extraordinary Hope After a Fatal Choice, Kristen Anderson was depressed. Not really any one thing contributed to this depression, but she'd been fighting with her parents, three friends had died as well as her grandmother, she had been raped, and the previous night she'd been out until ten in the morning with friends. She was grounded until further notice. She sneaked out to be with friends, left a note saying she was going to take a walk, and later was in a park. She decided to sit on a train car and think. As she heard a train approach, she decided she would end her life. She planned for the train to hit her and she assumed death would come instantly. Instead, she survived, but her legs were cut from her body.

How to Win Sweepstakes and Prizes!

I started entering sweepstakes as a hobby in 1998.  My very first prize was a trip for two to Arizona and $2,000 cash.  I was hooked, and since that time I have won a whole host of other things.  One of the questions I get asked most is "How do you do it?"  Today you are in luck, because I'm going to share my secrets with you!

By definition a sweepstakes is a giveaway where no purchase is required (in the USA) and the winner is picked randomly.  (A contest requires skill.  Watch for an upcoming blog post on that!)

Have an e-mail address different from your personal one.  You will get overwhelmed with "gray mail" after a while (e-mail receive from mailing lists).  It will be easier if you separate this from the beginning by having different accounts.  Also, I recommend keeping the words "Win" "Sweepstakes" "Contest", etc out of your e-mail address.

Are People Who Win Sweepstakes Just Lucky Ducks?

I love to enter sweepstakes.   Most of my friends, acquaintances, and even random people tell me "You are so lucky!"  I try to tell them that sweepstakes is a numbers game and the more you enter the more likely you are to win.

Few people actually keep good records of how many sweepstakes they enter.  I do, though.  The reasoning behind it is because I can usually see trends that follow how much I enter and how much I win.  If I am not winning much, a quick look at the chart tells me if I was not entering as much and my wins SHOULD be fewer than usual.

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Each year I get a new incentive chart.  I need one that has at least 24 columns across and at minimum 31 rows down.  I always use a fine point Sharpie marker to help it stand out from what I write inside the boxes.

Pizza Hut on a Budget -- Use the app!

One of my travel tricks is earning points on everything I can. Another trick is getting things at a discount, and my third trick is when traveling sometimes I want something delivered, or if we are on the road, I want my meal ready when I arrive. 

I know that Pizza Hut and bargain are not words that often come in the same sentence for me, but I have been highly pleased with the prices we have found through the app.  I have ordered everything from $5.99 two topping large pizzas, $5 medium three topping pizzas, and 50% off regular menu prices.  What we order depends on what the special is.  I've actually found that Pizza Hut can be just a little over what a premium frozen pizza costs at the grocery store!  Who knew? 

Touring The World of Coca-Cola -- Atlanta Georgia

It's been a few years since I have visited Coca-Cola World in Atlanta, but every time my husband and I have driven through Georgia, I have told him we need to visit there sometime as he has never been.

I was at a convention in Atlanta, and this was back when Coke had the rewards program going.  You could turn in points for a ticket into the museum.  This is what I did, and so the visit cost me nothing.  However, Coke Rewards is a thing of the past, and the current admission price is $17 for adults.  This is very high by my "Small Budget" standards.  Even so, I still recommend this because it is a couple hours entertainment.  Plus, this is not something you can do just anywhere, you have to be in Atlanta to visit.

I have always loved seeing where things are made,  pop culture (no pun intended -- okay so pun was intended), and I've always loved junk food and sugary snacks (and my waist line shows it.)  I also love Christmas, and where better to visit than the factory of the company who invented the American Santa Claus?

How to Earn FREE DISNEYLAND ADMISSION TICKETS!

Visiting any Disney Park isn't exactly a budget friendly vacation, but I do regret that I never was able to visit one when I was growing up.  (In fact I still haven't been.)  So many people try to plan trips to "The Happiest Place on Earth" on a shoestring.  This isn't always very realistic, but did you know you can get your admission tickets to DisneyLand in Anaheim, California for free?

As is everything posted on Small Budget Big Travels, this is a legitimate deal!  It does take some work, but it's entirely possible.
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Swagbucks is a portal where you can earn points called SBs.  You can do this by doing searches, watching videos, surveys, printing and using grocery coupons, starting your online shopping there, plus many more ways of earning points.

What Is The Best Choice For Your First Rewards Credit Card?

One of the ways I am able to travel and save so much money is by utilizing rewards credit cards to their maximum benefit.  When you get a credit card, treat it like cash.  Pay it off at the end of every month so you don't have to pay interest.  Using it wisely can net you some great benefits.  I sell on eBay as my main income.  I put my eBay bill, as much postage as I can, and even buying new inventory on a credit card.  It adds up quickly, as does my rewards.

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But there is always the question of "What card is best for me?" and "What is the best first rewards credit card?"

My opinion is the Discover Card.  Why this card?   It's a good all around card.  There are no annual fees.  (Those are not always bad, as I talk about in other posts.)  It's a basic 1% back on spending.  You can chose to redeem for gift cards at a lower rate than the value of the card if you would rather have gift cards.  You can get a $50 Best Western gift card for only $45 in rewards.  There are also restaurant gift cards which could help you with costs on your next trip.

Book Review: Wild & Wonderful (and Paranormal) West Virginia

FTC disclaimer:  I purchased this book myself.  All opinions are my own.  This post contains affiliate links.

I went to school for a couple years in Tennessee having grown up in West Virginia.  As is typical of college kids, we would sometimes sit in a dark room and tell ghost stories.  (Even at a Christian college!)  There was one friend of mine who would leave the room when I would tell a story because she said they were so frightening.  I adapted most of my tales from Ruth Ann Musick's books.  So of course, when I saw this book, I was curious.

Wild & Wonderful (and Paranormal) West Virginia exceeded all expectations I had.  Unlike other books, it didn't just deal with one subject, but included The Moth Man, Flatwoods Monster, UFOs, ghosts,  Sheepsquatch (which I had never before heard anything about it) and also included other strange phenomenon and cryptozoological mysteries from across the Mountain State.

The thing set this book apart from others in this genre is that the author tried to give multiple explanations when possible, and some of them seemed quite plausible to me.  For instance, there have been reports of kangaroos getting loose from zoos and other places, so who is to say some of these monsters might not be part of a pack of kangaroos that live in a remote part of West Virginia? Obviously, he also leaves open the possibility for paranormal occurrences, but I really enjoyed reading the different theories.

Small Steps: The Year I Got Polio Book Review

When I was a child, I remember meeting someone who had been crippled with polio.  She was the first person I ever met who was in a wheelchair, and as children are apt to do, I was extremely interested in the fact she was in a chair that rolled around.  Of course my parents were embarrassed at the attention I was giving her chair, but she showed it off to me and told me about how she did different activities that many of us take for granted.  Of course, this is a great way for children to learn about handicaps.

I remember coming home and telling my mother I hoped I never got polio.  She told me I never would and reminded me of the little cup of liquid I didn't like the taste of but was required to drink.  She explained that would keep me from getting polio.  Of course I asked why that lady didn't drink that liquid and it was explained when she got polio there was no vaccine.

Polio was a very real -- and very scary -- part of life before the vaccine was developed.  The iron lung, a machine that helps patients breathe was developed in the 1920s.  In 2017, there were still three people alive living in an iron lung.  Polio was highly contagious -- and when she was twelve years old, Peg Kehret had a twitching thigh muscle in chorus, then went home for lunch.  She collapsed, and was diagnosed with polio.

Where to find Sweepstakes, Contests, and Giveaways to enter.

FTC disclaimer:  This post includes affiliate links.

There are thousands of sweepstakes, giveaways, and contests where you could win prizes.  But where do you even begin to look?

First, keep your eyes open around you.  Be aware of drop boxes in stores.  Also, packaging or advertising that you can use to find out more information.

Personally, other than local sweepstakes, I tend to find the sweepstakes I enter in one of four ways.