My mother used to complain that, when she was going someplace with friends, it would take all five women in the car to remember how to get where they were going. I laughed then; I don't any more. Big bad memory going to get you too! BOOO!

     But recent studies indicate that brain exercises can help prevent the forgetfulness of old age - and millions of baby boomers and seniors were ENERGIZED by this news. Well, the Internet is interested in whatever we're interested in. So, following these revelations, a "brain fitness industry" has sprung up like a crop of mushrooms on a rainy day.

     I've had fun researching this, since it is now my duty to exercise my brain by playing games. More information will be coming out as time goes on, but I think you'll enjoy the preliminary information in item 2 - because now it's YOUR duty to have a good time.

     Janette

1. BARGAIN TIME

     It's been a few months since I did online bargains. While I wasn't looking, the bargain sites got listed on search engines that collect prices from all over the Internet. And now comes a super-site called PRICING CENTRAL, which "indexes all the best price search engines." The Internet is now filling with "super sites" that fold in information from several related sites. Find the information on this super site by clicking on:

http://pricingcentral.com/

     And don't forget the site I wrote up on October 15. The people at CONSUMER SEARCH read numerous product performance reviews, including those of Consumer Reports, and summarize them on their website. Which makes Consumer Search a site you'll want to use when you're shopping for important items.

http://consumersearch.com/

2. EXERCISING YOUR HEAD MUSCLES

     When I was young, I decided not to remember numbers, except for my phone number and address, of course. Didn't want to clutter up my brain. Big mistake! The more numbers you memorize, the more neurons your brain creates to perform that task. My husband took the opposite tack, and he can tell you the number of every place he's gone to that day for his job as a professional driver. The more your brain is exercised, the better it gets, whether you're young or old! The following research shows that brain training can improve seniors' memory as long as five years later:

http://www.nih.gov/news/pr/dec2006/nia-19.htm

     Now, frankly, more research needs to be done on exactly which mind exercises are most helpful. But current thinking is that brain exercises are like body exercises: it pays to exercise different parts of your brain in different ways. Here are some brain exercises recommended by the SAVVY SENIOR site: "Crossword, jigsaw or Sudoku puzzles; games like Scrabble, cards, chess or checkers; learn a new language or musical instrument; start a new hobby; take a class; read; volunteer; and be sure to exercise your body too."

     The Savvy Senior address below lists a number of games you can purchase. I know that you like things that are free, though, and that's coming up next.

http://www.giftlegacy.com/savvy_senior.jsp?WebID=GL2005-0304&D=200708

     BRAINGLE has brain teasers and brain games of many kinds, and all free. One game is Sudoku, an excellent brain trainer, as you have to plan several steps ahead, as in chess. Don't forget that Frank Ross gave us a lead to a great Sudoku hint. Click on my November 1 issue, in the lefthand column. It's number 9.

http://www.braingle.com/

     EONS will also give you brain training, though I'm afraid you'll have to put up with a bunch of gambling ads to get it. But the games - jigsaws, Sudoku, MahJong, matchups, Scrabble and more - are all free, and even I, who normally hate games, enjoyed some of them. The Eons matchups are a fun way to exercise your short-term memory, which is the part of memory that tends to weaken as you get older.

http://fun.eons.com/games/index

     And at SHARPBRAINS.COM, you can find out about "the emerging field of science-based brain fitness," along with fun brain teasers. A lot of their material will cost you, but you can learn the latest news about this mushrooming field for free.

http://www.sharpbrains.com/blog/2006/09/29/brain-exercise-games-frontal-and-parietal-lobes/

     Don't know if I should say this or not, but when your computer acts up and you're yanking out hanks of hair, trying one thing after another, you are also exercising your brain. So remember to hum, as you yank hanks, "computer clouds come with silver linings."

3. WRETCHED WRITERS WELCOME

     The contest on the BULWER-LYTTON website challenges you to exercise your brain by writing the worst possible first sentence of a novel. In my opinion, Bulwer-Lytton.com is the funniest site on the web. I have demoted www.meankitty.com, formerly my number one, to second place. And now for a first worst winner, listed on the site under "Lyttony of Grand Prize Winners," and you'll note that the whole thing is a single sentence.

     "The lovely woman-child Kaa was mercilessly chained to the cruel post of the warrior-chief Beast, with his barbarous tribe now stacking wood at her nubile feet, when the strong, clear voice of the poetic and heroic Handsomas roared, "Flick your Bic, crisp that chick, and you'll feel my steel through your last meal." - Steven Garman, Pensacola, Florida (1984 Winner)

     Click below for the whole shemoozle, and maybe tap within yourself an unexpected ability to do truly terrible writing:

http://www.bulwer-lytton.com/

4. CHRISTIAN DIRECTORY

     I've recently come across some extra-good Christian websites. Here's the first:

     This CHRISTIAN DIRECTORY lists Christian chat rooms, Christian singles sites (they're BIG these days), plus news, jobs, entertainment, ministries, and publications, all from a Christian perspective. It's an amazing selection. Find it all here:

http://www.christianwebsite.com/index.html

5. CHRISTIAN MUSIC DIRECTORY

     A real find. The site says, "We provide Christian music news and information on Christian artists, Christian concerts and tours, Christian music song charts, albums, live media streaming, recording and distributing your Christian music, developing your talent, church music, local events, ministry opportunities and much more."

http://www.christianmusic.org/cmp/artists/

6. SEW ON FIRE

     The good people at Sew on Fire say, "Our message is very clear -- people helping people, sending the love of God in a tangible format as humanitarian aid to a hurting world. We do this through creatively packaged and designed gift bags (over 70,000 gifts to date) delivered to the fatherless, foster children, widows, single moms, prisoners, the homeless, the poor and the suffering all over the world."

     If you sew, knit, or crochet, you can supply useful items to this excellent Canadian group. Or you can donate finances, prayer, and certain items they're always in need of. For example, when garage sale season starts, you might keep your eyes open for needed items, such as sports equipment, children's running shoes, and children's t-shirts and shorts.

     Learn more by going to:

http://www.sewonfire.com/how_you_can_help.htm

7. PASS IT ON

     Do you have a friend or relative who would be interested in some of the things in this newsletter? Why not forward the e-mail you clicked on to get here - or tell them simply to go to TourtheSites.com and click on March 15 in the left margin. They can also then get a free subscription for themselves, of course.

http://tourthesites.com/

8. BUYING OR SELLING A HOUSE?

     If you're in the real estate market this spring - or, for that matter, if you know someone else who is - here are some extra-good sites:

     MOVE.COM is a super-super-site, combining three super sites about buying, selling, building, renting. Search millions of real estate listings from all over America, find out about rentals, home financing, moving companies, and more.

     How much is your house worth today? MOVE.COM has a new feature: you can find out what houses in your neighborhood, or in the neighborhood where you're headed, are actually selling for right now.

http://www.move.com/

     THE WALL STREET JOURNAL also operates a super-site, gathering information on a multitude of related topics. You'll find here real-estate news, how to advertise your house, "safe suburbs with good schools," mortgage information, and much more. I must add that the Wall Street Journal is upscale, and so is this site.

http://www.realestatejournal.com/

9. DO-IT-YOURSELF HOME REPAIR

     The DO-IT-YOURSELF super site is also acting like a business conglomerate, but instead of getting more information about home building and repair, it has moved into unrelated fields. The site starts out telling you how to do home remodeling and repairs of all types, including plumbing and heating. That's what it does best. But then it expands to tell you how to "buy or sell a car, finance your new vehicle, select an auto insurance company, make auto repairs, stay updated on your automobiles maintenance, and safely operate a boat, RV and ATV." Then it moves to lifestyle, including holiday decorations and party ideas.

     So take what you want, and have a good time, because it's all free.

http://www.doityourself.com/

10. THE LANDSCAPE DESIGN SITE

     This site will show, with photos, how you can give your garden a professionally landscaped look. They've got an especially good section on xeriscaping, for those of you who live where water may be in short supply. As their photos show, a xeriscape doesn't have to be simply a pile of gravel; it can offer beauty and variety. Besides xeriscapes, you'll also find photos and instruction about gardening on a hill and fitting decorative rocks into the landscape.

http://the-landscape-design-site.com/

11. THE A TO Z CHALLENGE FOR KIDS

     What a delightful site! The true adventure of "one seven-year-old boy named Freddie and his mother as they face the challenge of turning him from a Vegetable-Phobic into a boy who will eat and even enjoy some of life's leafier pleasures. Join us as we work through the A to Z of vegetables!" When I got there, Fred had tried asparagus, aubergine (eggplant), artichoke, broccoli, beetroot, butternut squash, brussel sprouts, beans, and broccoli. He was working on the C's, such things as courgettes (summer squash), carrots, and celeriac. You'll be pleased to know that Fred is still a normal British boy, and one of his favorite ways to eat beetroot turned out to be in chocolate cake. A recipe for a delicious chocolate cake with grated raw beet is included, of course.

http://www.greatbigvegchallenge.blogspot.com/

12. RECIPE: EASY PEACHY CHICKEN

     Bill and I love this one, which makes ordinarily dry chicken breasts moist and delicious. It's equally good with Del Monte lite apricots instead of peaches. Last night I tried it with frozen apple juice concentrate (no lemon), apple chunks, and a sprinkling of cinnamon on the apples. Bill thinks that version was best of all.

PEACHY CHICKEN (LOW CALORIE)

4 boneless chicken breasts
1 (16 oz.) can Delmonte lite peaches
2 tablespoons lemon juice
Salt and pepper to taste

     Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

     Drain peach juice into a cup; add lemon juice. Place chicken in a baking pan. Pour peach juice over chicken. Bake about 25 to 30 minutes. Turn chicken over and add peach slices or peach halves to pan. Return to oven and bake for another 15 to 20 minutes. Serve with 1/2 cup rice and green beans for a low calorie meal.

     The recipe came from:

http://www.cooks.com/rec/view/0,1639,156165-234193,00.html

MISSED SOME ISSUES?

     Have I got a solution for you! Now that we are using a frame for each issue, you can just look over to your left and find all the back issues nicely set out. Simply click on the ones you missed. That means too that if your e-mail service provider gets sticky and decides that Tour the Sites is spam (it is NOT spam), you can foil it and find the newsletter at this address.

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WARNING!

     If your e-mail box sometimes gets full, you are in danger of falling off the subscription list of Tour the Sites. Not because I want to lose you, but because, if your box is full when I send out a newsletter, you are automatically kicked off the list. I don't like that policy, but I don't have any say. If you change your e-mail address or get a new kind of spam filter, you may also fall off. So do keep an eye on your newsletters, which should arrive around the first and fifteenth of each month. If you haven't gotten one for a month, let me know and I'll be happy to put you back on the mailing list. Because I'd really hate to lose you.

Janette
Newsletter@tourthesites.com

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© Copyright 2007 Janette G. Blackwell. All rights reserved. You may copy and use portions of this newsletter for noncommercial, personal use only. You may forward a copy to someone else as long as the copyright notice is included. Any other use of the materials in this newsletter without prior written permission is prohibited.