Inefficient Design

What does that bring to mind? The first thing that comes to my mind is the gallon milk jug. That has to be the most completely inefficient design I have seen in a while. It is near impossible to open a new gallon of milk and pour some into just a glass. No. Not just a glass. The glass, down the side of the carton, drops on the counter, etc. Try doing that one-handed with a child on one hip. Impossible. Is it really that hard to design a jug that holds the gallon of contents, AND can be easily and cleanly emptied from the beginning? I think not. I think the gallon jug design is not for ease of use and convenience for the consumer. No. It's for ease of use, and shipping and handling convenience for the manufacturers, packers and shippers. I think they designed it that way for strength and durability while distributing to grocery stores all over the country. Notice I said "country" and not "world." I seem to recall milk being packaged and distributed in bags in Canada. Something I originally considered unusual. Looking back, I think the Canadians had it right! We would take the bag out of the box it came in, slip it into a specially made "milk pitcher," snip off the corner and pour. I would even say that we got more of those "last drops" out of the empty bag than out of an empty carton. Then the bag gets tossed, and the pitcher reused. Less bulky recycling or garbage, more accurate and cleanly pouring... easy, clean, refreshing enjoyment.

There are many other completely ridiculous and inefficiently designed products out there. But the milk jug is a daily nuisance in my house with as much milk as we go through. What other inefficient designs have you encountered lately? I'd really like to know.

The Picture

Here's what I came up with. I decided not to make fence-shaped cookies, because I didn't have a fence-shaped cookie cutter. If anyone knows where I can get one, I'd still like to... Anyway. I did have a fence stamp, though. So I made the card in the shape of a house, and put the fence across the bottom. It can open up to read the rest of the letter. I decided on chocolate chip cookies because everyone likes chocolate chip cookies, right? They do look good, don't they? Mmmmm... Hopefully it's enough of a peace offering. I know, I went totally out of my way. But it was kinda fun to make everything. I haven't had much time to be crafty lately. Feel free to click the picture to see the words. And yes, they both say different things at one point. One of our neighbors has an in-ground trampoline and a treehouse-type play area with a slide, and the other one has a pond with a bunch of goldfish in it. Hence, the fence. We don't want any tragic drowning accidents this summer with four little ones who don't know how dangerous water really is. What do you think?

The Solution

I've created it. The nice, friendly, non-offensive way to inform my neighbors I'm putting in a fence. I guess I could say that it's not ME that's telling them... it's the kids! How can they get mad at kids, right? Here's what it will say. Feel free to comment with any suggestions for change to make it more amiable.

Dear Neighbors,

Our Mama has to come outside
each time we want to play and hide.

There's too many things to straighten and dust
to spend all her day outside with us.

She often likes to come out, too,
but sometimes needs a break for a few.

So even though we really like you,
(your toys are fun to play on, too),

Our parents decided it just makes sense
to go ahead and put up a fence.

We hope you don't take it personally.
She needs this 'til we're good at listening.

Love, The Farnsworth Children

This little poem will be on some cute paper, maybe all shaped like a house or something, and will arrive with a plate of fence-shaped cookies. I'll post a picture when I get it all put together. For now, I'd like to know what you think and if there's any spectacular changes you can think of that I didn't. What do you think?

Lame.

I have been a lame visiting teacher lately. It's not often that I find myself having to make apologies and excuses for why I haven't fulfilled an obligation. Usually, I'm hard pressed to call someone to fill in for me, or to stay home from a meeting or obligation. However, in the month of February, I neglected to do my visiting teaching. It was the first time in probably 6 months I didn't physically go visit my sisters. That's pretty good considering we only moved into the ward 7 months prior, and I started going the first month I had an assignment. All boasting aside, I did not make it out in February. I felt badly, and still felt the need to at least drop by a little note. Here's what it said (and I wish I had a picture of the little card I put it on, because it was actually kind of cute):

"Because this month has been insane,
We know we have been really lame.

We didn't come to visit you,
Although we had intended to.

We hope this message helps you start
To find forgiveness in your heart.

We promise now, to never more
Neglect to show up at your door.

Please accept our apology,
And do enjoy this yummy treat!

Love, Your Visiting Teachers"

I pasted a snipit of the VT message to the back of the card, and left a cute little bundle of heart-shaped Rice Krispy treats in red wrapping on each of my ladies' doorsteps. At least I could invoke a smile, right? Even though I wasn't completely fulfilling my responsibility? Feel free to copy the idea if you ever need to apologize for missing an obligation.

Now. On to another challenge that needs similarly addressed. We've decided to put up a fence in our back yard. From the moment we moved in, we were fully aware that both our neighbors disliked the idea of us having one. I think they like the openness of the three yards, and the freedom of not having a boundary in view. However, I have some serious justifiable reasons for wanting one in, not limited to the fact that I have four small children who neglect to follow the rules of staying in our yard on their own. There is a pond in one of my neighbors' back yards. 14 inches deep. Not fenced. The other neighbor has a too-tall makeshift treehouse with no railings and way-too-steep slide right next to their in-ground trampoline. That same neighbor also has an outdoor cat that tends to make our yard it's litterbox (don't even get me started on how unsanitary that is around young children), and a dog that is seldom attached to it's tie that is supposed to keep it in it's own yard. She also finds it fascinating to relieve herself in someone else's yard or driveway (mine). Less bothersome, yet still compelling reasons for getting a fence, would be privacy, containment of children and property, and being able to grant more complete access to the yard for a dog. Plus, we plan to plant a garden this spring, and having one of the sides of our yard fenced would provide perfect and non-awkward, out of the way bed placement. So, any great suggestions similar to my visiting teaching poem/treat for a peace-offering to break the news that we're going to be putting an eyesore in our neighbors' yards?

Regrets

Have you ever been torn between two choices of food to eat? I was last night. I had gone out on a hubby-approved solo venture, and had stopped by Super Target. While there, I purchased some apples. Only $0.99/lb. Pretty good deal for their size. Before I had even gone in, I was hungry. I even decided to stop by the indoor restaurant, but didn't find anything appealing. As I was putting my purchases in the trunk, I thought maybe I'd grab an apple and eat it. However, since I had tied the bag closed in the store so they wouldn't fall out of the cart, I decided against it. (Too cold outside to stand there untying the bag to get to the apples) A while later, I decided to stop by Arby's. Usually I love their roast beef sandwiches, but this time, I tried their Popcorn Chicken Poppers with honey mustard. They were good, and they were fresh. Very tasty. But when I was finished, and felt full of greasy chicken, I wished I would have chosen the apple instead. It would have been cheaper (less than $1), and definitely would have been healthier. Lesson learned: Always follow my instincts. My first instinct was to eat the apple. I didn't follow that instinct, and ended up regretting it.

To Be? Or Not To Be... American Idol?

I don't know how many people know this, but American Idol winner, David Cook, didn't originally intend to audition for the show. He went to the auditions that day in support of his brother, who ultimately was not even sent to Hollywood. I've thought about this subject often since watching parts of the show last season. I tried to place myself in his shoes. If I had gone to support a family member or close friend, not intending to audition myself, and I went on to win the entire competition, how would I feel? Here's what I came up with: First, if I were there with my family member, and I made it through and not that person, I would feel a little obligated to drop out. I would at least want to have a conversation about it. If staying in the competition was going to severely affect my relationship with the person in a negative way, I may just decide to drop out. In the grand scheme of things, it's the relationships with family and friends that carry over, right? Fame and fortune come and go. We live and die, and in the life hereafter, I would want to remember that I chose family over fame. If the conversation with my friend ended with a mutual agreement and comfort with my moving on and participating in the competition, I probably would. I might feel a little awkward winning, and I would probably always wonder if my friend secretly resented me for it. In the end, we all have to live with the choices we make. Some more important and life-altering than others. When in the heat of the moment, I hope I can make the right one. When I make the wrong one, and realize it's a mistake, I hope I can have the moral courage to try and reverse it, or at least make it right. On another note: Way to go, David! I'm glad he won. He definitely was the better showman.

A.W.O.L.

Whatever happened to all the patriotism that blossomed right after September 11, 2001? I remember painting a large waving flag across the rear window of my car shortly after the terror attacks on my homeland. I drove with it that way for weeks and even avoided washing my car so that I could leave the flag up a little longer. I remember walking through the department stores and finding multiple options for T-shirts with some sort of American flag or our Red White and Blue color scheme. I saw every other car on the highway with a waving flag wedged in the window or on the antenna. People were not afraid to proudly wear our country's colors in December or January without condescending glances from passersby on the street. Here we are, a few years later, and I'm hard pressed to find a patriotic tee in the department stores. I haven't seen one of those car flags for at least a year. The car that once donned a big, sparkling, waving American flag has long since been sold, and I haven't heard much positive talk about the country I have grown to love in a very long time. Even the recent election has cast an unpatriotic hue on our great country. It was more about backbiting and one-upping than what I consider the more important issues. Am I wrong? Or has the patriotism and loyalty I so amorously admired seven years ago all but disappeared?