Detecting bedbugs

How do you know if you have a bed bug infestation?

• You wake up with itchy welts that appear in a cluster or row of threes. That's their calling card. But don't freak out, yet it could be another insect. Also 1 in 3 folks are lucky enough to not have reactions to bed bug bites
• You see tiny black spots or rust staines on mattress seams, headboards, baseboards, or corners where walls meet. It looks kinda like moldy.
• They smell like rotting coconuts. 

The key to getting rid of bed bugs is detecting an infestation early and treating it before it spreads.

Spectacular autumnal road trip on Utah's Highway 12

Utah's Highway 12 is also known as Journey Through Time Scenic Byway. This 125-mile curvaceous two-lane road is jam-packed with four state parks, two national parks, a national forest, and the Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument. It is particularly spectacular during the fall.

Start from outside Panguitch (about 250 miles south of Salt Lake City), to red canyons, hoodoos, Bryce Canyon National Park (with Fairyland Point, just outside the gate, as a highlight). Next, move on to Kodachrome Basin State Park with its gravity-defying sandstone chimneys, and then to Escalante Petrified Forest State Park with multi-colored petrified trees.

At milepost 75, you climb up Hogsback with views of the rounded dome of Navajo Mountain. After passing by Boulder Mountain, you end in Torrey, where you can hustle over to the Capitol Reef National Park.

And don't miss out on Hell's Backbone Grill, which is a gourmet destination.

For more information, see http://www.utah.com/byways/highway_12.htm and AAA Via magazine.

Picture from: http://utahpictures.com/Highway_12_Dec.php

Researching your hotel

If you travel a lot, booking hotels is one of the most time consuming part of your research. Besides the price, you have to worry about the cleanliness, location, parking, facilities, bathroom quality, and other such things.

Of course, the pictures look great and the description makes the place sound like a resort spa, but you kinda suspect that the PR people were feeling creative. They never tell you things like how the available parking will cost you $25 a night and that they have only 12 spots. The hotel knows that once you show up, you are not likely to ditch them for another hotel, especially if they already have your credit card information. 

I once booked a hotel that described itself as "hip" and "urban," but it turned out to be an euphemism for "Motel 6-esque with a bit more style." There were no bedbugs, though, so I can't really complain. 

So if you really want a better idea of what you are booking, go to http://www.oyster.com/ first. They send investigators to write honest reports and take lots of pictures. And I mean lots of pictures (see the Photos tab). You'll have a good idea of what you are booking. Finally, a WYSIWYG travel site. 

Garden chores for autumn

Here's the task list for fall.

• Plant spring bulbs, shrubs, and trees.
• Plant salad crops 4-6 weeks before the first frost.
• Rail against the end of summer!

Backcountry comforts

Just because you're in the boonies doesn't mean you have to be uncivilized. Here are a few neat tricks

Laundromat
Put your clothes in a wide-mouth water bottle, fill 3/4 with water and a teaspoon of biodegradable soap. Toss in the backpack. The churning action strips out the stench and you have fresh laundry. (from Dave Trendler)

Food that does double duties
Tortillas are dense in calories and don't need special packing care (they're already flat!), and it works as a yummy potholder/hotpad.

Bagging a bargain according to the calendar

Excerpt, Vanguard  

Some goods are less expensive at certain times of the year. You can find opportunities through an online search engine, using a phrase such as "best time to buy" either by itself, or in combination with the type of product you need.

Appliances
Just like automobiles and many other goods, appliances go through annual makeovers. And the new versions emerge in September and October.

That makes those months a great time to buy appliances because prices on the old models get slashed to get them out of the store, according to Bankrate.com.

Automobiles
Getting a car at a great price often depends a lot on how good a bargainer you are. However, according to Edmunds.com, an authoritative automotive website, you can get closer to your ideal price if you shop for those wheels:

•  At the end of the month, when dealerships are eager to earn manufacturer bonuses for meeting sales quotas.
• At the end of a model year, when last year's car looks so out of date.
• At the end of a car's design cycle, just before the car been redesigned bumper to bumper. 

Carpeting 
Who thinks of buying carpeting in January? Very few of us, says Kiplinger magazine, which is why the people selling wall-to-wall carpets tend to offer very good deals that month to get us to consider new rugs.

But, it is best to find that plush carpet by mid-February, the magazine says. After that, tax refunds start arriving in and prices on carpets tend to start going back up, the magazine adds.

Computers 
It is possible to find good deals on computers during the holiday season and the weeks just before school starts—times when electronics stores like to put computers on sale.

However, February and March also bring good money-saving opportunities on computers and other electronic products. Why? Because early in January and February manufacturers of electronic products gather at the International Consumer Electronics Show and Macworld to announce their coolest, newest products, automatically rendering the ones announced the previous year obsolete.

"Deals often come up when a technology is outdated and retailers want to get rid of older models," the website GetRichSlowly.org says.

Cooking stuff
Absolutely need new pots and pans? Look for bargains in May, April, October and November, according to an article on Bankrate.com.

Stores put cookware on sale in April and May because shoppers look for wedding and graduation gifts. Cookware goes on sale again in October and November to appeal to holiday gift-givers, says the website.

Digital cameras
February and March are also particularly good months to snag a deal on a digital camera because new models are introduced in January at International CES and the Photo Marketing Association show, according to the magazine PCWorld.

"As new cameras arrive, sellers deeply discount the older models … a boon for bargain hunters who don't need the latest and greatest technology," the magazine points out.

Furniture 
New furniture models come to the stores in February, according to Bankrate.com. And that turns February into a good month to save on furniture.

However, if you are looking to replace that age-old bedraggled couch and miss the February window, you may get another chance in July, a month when the new stuff for fall starts arriving, according to Bankrate.com.

Health club memberships
July, August, and September "are traditionally fire-sale season for fitness centers," because many fitness buffs quit their gyms and take to exercising outdoors, according to Forbes magazine.

Outdoor toys
All that fun stuff for summer—everything from bathing suits to swing sets—sees prices drop in August, when stores are looking to increase their stocks of fall merchandise, according to Kiplinger. During those dog days of summer you can look for discounts that range from 30% to 75%, the magazine says.

Plane tickets
Airline ticket prices veer crazily, driven by competition among airlines, the season, and even fuel prices.
Still, experts point to one time when you can look for good deals: Wednesday, which is the midpoint of a complicated weekly cycle that sees prices start to rise late in the week and then start to fall early the following week.

"What’s the best time to buy your ticket on Wednesday? One hour after Tuesday midnight (1 a.m. Wednesday morning)," Peter Greenberg, travel editor for CBS News and travel editor at large for AARP, writes on his website.

"Why? At about midnight, the airlines usually reload their computers with the latest low-cost fares that were announced the previous day but will be canceled if they are not purchased within 24 hours," Greenberg advises.

Vacuum cleaners
Yes, there's even a good time to wind up with a deal on a vacuum cleaner: April and May, just before new models are announced in June, says FreeShipping.org, a website for bargain hunters.
We can’t always plan when we have to make purchases. But if you think there’s a new purchase in your future consider the above guidelines. You may just find yourself spending less than you anticipated.

How to compliment people

From "Why Compliments Terrify Us" by Elizabeth Bernstein for the Wall Street Journal

• Be sincere.
• Be selective. Think Goldilocks. Not too big or too small. 
• Be specific. Don't say" You look pretty today. Say: That sweater really brings out the color of your eyes. 
• Show impact. Tell people how they have positively affected you. Instead of "I like your column today," try "Your story made me run out and complement a stranger. 

When you receive a compliment, just say thank you. Be gracious, not self-deprecating. Don't worry about returning the praise. It's a compliment, not a volley.