A Costco Shout-Out! Salsa Fresca (refrigerated deli section) and Monterey Breakfast Wraps; a great combination.

The Salsa is $4.99 for around 48 ounces and the Wraps are about $1.00 each in a box of 10. These two products were being demo’d together and they were dynamite together (August 13). The samples were only portions of the wrap with the salsa on one end. The tastes were very compementary and even for an adult, a shared portion in the morning may be just enough with your cup of coffee. Once again Costco provides some relief!


Costco’s Kirkland Signature, Carnegie Deli Dill Pickle Spears

I recently purchased these cold packed deli spears at my local Costco. They were located in the Deli Section and, of course, are refrigerated. I liked three things about these pickles better than the Clausen’s cold packed pickles. I liked the expiration date (10/27/09), the price (under $5) and I liked the package size (62 Fl. oz.).

I have been to the Carnegie Deli in midtown Manhattan and am not a fan. However, these pickles have nice appeal. The taste is not overwhelming but as a side with a sandwich or just a midday snack, they have caught my eye. I am going to dice one and add it to the mayo the next time I prepare some Albacore Tuna for a sandwich. For a dill pickle they have just the right touch of spice. Try some and see, but beware, don’t buy this package if you have no inclination toward pickles, especially dill pickles.

Google Chrome

I could care less about the silly left leanings of Google’s founders. That said, they have come up a new favorite for me. Google Chrome is their relatively new web browser and I am loving it. It took me numerous attempts to successfully download Chrome over a period of days but has proven worth the effort. If you have checked out my links under Blog Roll you have seen a number of sites that I like and thought that you might also like.

After I log on and get set to browse the web, Google Chrome allows me to open each of the links in a separate tab. In less than a few seconds I am able to begins scouring each site individually, within its own separate tab. Just the Alka Seltzer, relief is quick and permanent. I have Internet Explorer, Netscape, Firefox and probably one or two other browsers but none of them offers me the simple operation and expediency of Google Chrome.

As time goes on I am sure that I will discover even better attributes imbedded within this new product. Recently I have been giving Microsoft’s Bing a chance to prove itself. Once again, comparing the two initial offerings I have to stick with my convictions that Microsoft is far from an innovative company. Bing just has not shown me that WOW factor that I expected I would find. On the other hand, Google continues to show me strong dependable competence with respect to its products and their features. I use Gmail exclusively now and as noted, Chrome is becoming a welcome addition to my arsenal for browsing the web.

Share your experiences below and perhaps we all learn some things that we did not previously know!

Lotus SMARTSuite, Release 9.8.2

I recently purchased this upgrade for my computer. I do use Microsoft’s Suite but have also had the Lotus suite for years. I enjoy Lotus 123 and certain features that exist on Lotus Freelance Graphics.

The real beauty of this Suite is that you can own it for under $30.00 and that includes the shipping. For a family on a budget that is a real steal. I will report more, later, on this newest version of the long time competitor. I ordered from Purplus, INC. 40A Lisbon Street San Rafael, CA 94901. You can find them online if you have an interest. They shipped via USPS and to rural WA State the trip was quick and the software arrived in great condition.