Ugh, I’m so frustrated with my skin problems right now that I could just scream! I’ve been following a pretty good skincare regimen for the past few months that included taking DIM for acne, using toner on a daily basis, exfoliating weekly, and using benzoyl peroxide cream on existing pimples. That system worked well for a while, and my face was actually clear for about a month or so.

But now I can see a whole new crop of clogged pores, blackheads, and pimples coming up all over my face! It just makes me sick and depressed to think about it. I mean, seriously… I’m 34 years old. When will my skin problems end?

I’ve tried all of the most popular acne treatments out there. Some work great for a while, but then my face goes back to the way it was. I can’t stand it!!

I usually don’t write about economic issues beyond my household budget, but I think this warrants mentioning. The Federal Reserve has announced that they’re cutting the federal funds rate by a quarter point, down to 2 percent — the lowest it has been since 2004. This marks the seventh rate cut since September 2007, but experts believe that the size of this latest cut shows that Federal Reserve chair Ben Bernanke isn’t likely to continue his policy of slashing rates.

After the Federal Reserve announcement was made public, banks wasted no time in cutting the prime lending rate to 5 percent. This means consumers and businesses will have cheaper credit at their disposal, which could help ease some of the problems caused by the housing crisis and general cash shortages.

In all honesty, I have no idea how the Fed’s rate cuts will affect me. I don’t have any loans tied to the prime rate, and I don’t really have any investments to speak of. Will this rate cut impact prices at, say, the grocery store? Again, no idea. Maybe I should have paid more attention in Econ 101!

I recently purchased a TV tuner card for my computer so I’d be able to watch shows on my monitor instead of having to turn the television on as well. Why would I want to watch something on my 15″ monitor instead of my beautiful 37″ LCD TV?

Well, for one thing, it makes me more productive. I can keep the TV show playing in the background while I continue blogging, emailing, or doing other tasks at my desk.

Second, having a TV tuner card allows me to do neat things like screen grabs so I can post relevant images in the various recaps that I write over at Reviews and More. I’ve received several positive emails from readers who have noticed (and appreciated) the difference, so that makes the change worth it. Take a look at an example from last night’s episode of House:

Now I’m trying to figure out whether or not an HDMI cable for my computer would be worth looking into. This would allow me to watch in high-def, but I’m not sure how much trouble it would be to set this up.

I’ll probably just ask my husband to check it out later!

Today is Free Cone Day at Ben & Jerry’s. I forgot all about this annual “event” until I read about it on a community newspaper website, so it’s probably too late for me to go out and get one. There’s no Ben & Jerry’s near me; the closest one is about 20 miles away in Oak Park, and that’s just too far to go for a free cone — especially with gas prices where they are now. Plus, even though I like several Ben & Jerry’s flavors, I’m not absolutely wild about them, ya know? Baskin Robbins is good enough for me, lol!

Cold Case has been one of my favorite TV shows for years now, but I’m sad to say that I’m not finding it very enjoyable anymore. One problem is that everything has become so formulaic that it’s easy to predict what will happen next. I guess that’s always a risk with police procedurals, as there always have to be investigation and interrogation scenes, but still… it’s getting really old on this show.

Another thing that’s beginning to bug me about Cold Case is how quickly some of the witnesses fold and confess. I mean, they’ve gotten away with murder for several decades, and then a couple of cops come snooping around again and the suspects don’t even bother lawyering up? That’s a stretch for sure.

Take last night’s episode, for instance. A man was suspected of murdering his wife back in 1962 and staging things to make it look like a suicide. The only evidence Lily and Scotty had was one of those marketing pens with a hospital name on it, nothing conclusive. But they showed the pen to the suspect and he caved instantly. Give me a break!

I just don’t know about this show anymore. The season finale is next week, and I’m definitely going to watch it, but I’m not sure if I’m going to bother tuning in for Season 6. Cold Case has just become far too repetitive for my tastes!

Jerry had the day off from work, but since we didn’t feel like going out, we decided to continue our spring cleaning efforts in the house. We’ve hauled out a bunch of junk so far, like old baby furniture that my son hasn’t used in years, broken toys, and anything else that we haven’t used in a long time. I hate the pack rat mentality that compels people to hold onto stuff just because it’s still in working condition. If you don’t use it, then either sell it or dump it!

We worked most of the morning, took a break to go out to New China Buffet for lunch, and then got right back to work again. Now at 4:30pm, the house feels clean, uncluttered, and ready for the fresh air of summer! I love it!

I just read on Twitter that Ted and Travis from IZEA were jumped over the weekend while they were at a bar in New Orleans. I’m not too sure about all the details, but Ted’s twitters made it sound like he was dragged from a urinal by eight guys who immediately started kicking and punching him. He was bloodied up pretty badly, and his wallet was stolen.

What happened to Travis is even more unclear, as I couldn’t find too much information about him. But Ted made it sound like Travis saved him (saying he probably owes his life to Travis) before getting beaten up as well.

The two were taken to the hospital and then eventually made their way back to Florida where they’re now recovering from their injuries.

Wow, that was just horrible. I’m so glad Ted and Travis are ok, and wish them a very speedy recovery .

Well, the 2008 NFL draft is now in the books, and the Bears managed to pick a bunch of players that I’ve never even heard of. I guess that’s not too difficult to do since I don’t follow college football all that much, but still… it would have been nice to see a familiar name or jersey number in there.

The Bears chose OT Chris Williams from Vanderbilt with their first pick (14th overall) in the draft. This fills a huge need on the aging offensive line, and is generally regarded by analysts to be an excellent selection.

In the second round, GM Jerry Angelo kept his focus on offense by selecting running back Matt Forte from Tulane. I’ve never heard of the guy, but apparently he put up some good numbers in college despite being the only threat on the team (and therefore someone that opponents could easily key on). I like the idea of having an alternative to Cedric Benson in the backfield, so I hope this pick works out.

The Bears then drafted wide receiver Earl Bennett — another Vandy alum — in the third round. Again, I don’t know anything about this player, but read that he led the SEC in catches and had a 3.2 GPA in school. To me, that’s a much better choice than Michigan’s Mario Manningham and his score of 6 on the Wonderlic test. Yikes.

Angelo switched up to defense in the next three rounds, selecting DT Marcus Harrison, S Craig Steltz, and CB Zackary Bowman. If the Bears had done any market research before the draft, they would have known that fans were clamoring for a QB prospect, but obviously teams don’t make their picks based on what fans want. The team definitely needs added depth on D, so I don’t have a problem with the way Angelo picked here.

I haven’t been following the late round picks, but know that the Bears have 5 coming to them in Round 7. Maybe Angelo can score something good from there, but I won’t be holding my breath.

The next step now is to get these guys signed and get them into camp on time. I can’t wait for July!

My husband can be such a child sometimes! I wasn’t feeling very well today, so I asked him to go grocery shopping for me. I made out a very detailed list and organized it according to how the store is laid out. For example, I put all the stuff that can be found in Aisle 1 right at the top of the list so he wouldn’t have to go searching all over the place for whatever I needed.

Anyway, I also had tampons on the list because, well, I need them!! But Jerry managed to “forget” about them, meaning I had to make a special trip back to the store just for that one item. It’s funny how he was able to locate every other thing on the grocery list except the feminine care products. I know he was just too embarrassed to buy them, but come on! It’s not as though I asked him to go purchase bridal lingerie or anything like that… they’re just tampons!

How ridiculous.

I know it’s Sunday, but I was so busy the past couple of days that I didn’t get a chance to do this week’s Booking Through Thursday meme on time. The organizers always say that you can post about the meme on any day, not just Thursday, so I’m taking them at their word this week!

Do your reading habits change in the Spring? Do you read gardening books? Even if you don’t have a garden? More light fiction than during the Winter? Less? Travel books? Light paperbacks you can stick in a knapsack?

Or do you pretty much read the same kinds of things in the Spring as you do the rest of the year?

My reading habit’s don’t change all that much in spring, though I do have a tendency to read a lot more poetry during these months than at other times of the year. For example, I love Browning’s “Home -Thoughts From Abroad”, Auden’s “Shield of Achilles”, “Spring” from GM Hopkins, and a bunch of stuff by Tennyson.

Other than this desire to delve into more poetry in spring, my reading habits don’t change with the season. I have a list of books to read throughout the year, and whenever a book’s title comes up, I tackle it — no matter what the weather’s like outside!

The 2008 NFL draft will be held this weekend in New York, so sports forums all over the ‘net are lighting up with speculation about which teams will select which players. So far, Jake Long is the only “sure thing”, as the Miami Dolphins have already signed the former Michigan OT to a five-year deal worth a staggering $57.5 million — $30 million of it guaranteed.

So the St. Louis Rams will be on the clock first, and most experts think they’ll use their pick on Chris Long, DE from Virginia and son of former Raiders great Howie Long.

My favorite team, the Chicago Bears, have the 14th pick and nobody seems to know what they’ll do with it. Despite needing help at QB, everyone pretty much agrees that the Bears won’t draft one in the early rounds. Instead, the latest projections from ESPN show the Bears taking RB Rashard Mendenhall (Illinois) with their pick.

I don’t know anything about Mendenhall, but if he’s better than Cedric Benson, I’m on board!

After an injury-plagued season last year, the defense needs help as well. The Bears slapped the franchise tag on Lance Briggs in 2007 and then managed to sign him to another contract, and with Urlacher recovering from his chronic neck and back injuries, the linebacking corps seems to be in good shape. But the D-line and secondary are still problematic, so I’m sure GM Jerry Angelo will pick up a couple of defensive backs or linemen as well.

I don’t have much going on this weekend, so I might tune in and watch a few teams make their picks. Hopefully the Bears will come away with some solid players!

I was supposed to go over to a friend’s house for a late lunch this afternoon. We set this up last week and confirmed by email yesterday. But when I got there, no one was home! The doors were locked, the roller shades were pulled down, and the place looked deserted.

I waited on the porch for about 20 minutes while trying to reach my friend on her cell phone. Nothing. So I just left. Then, as I was driving home, I got a text saying she was sorry but she forgot all about the lunch.

Hmm, sounds a bit fishy to me. She’s not the kind of person who forgets things like this, so I’m thinking she just stood me up. Maybe she had a better offer or just had a ton of things to do today. Whatever it was, I highly doubt that she simply “forgot”.

Men’s magazine FHM recently polled its readers to find out which woman they thought was sexiest in the world. The winner? Actress Megan Fox, who was ranked way back at No. 65 just last year. What brought on the “transformation” from 65th-sexiest to all-time sexiest? Her lead role in the summer blockbuster Transformers, that’s what!

Megan Fox is still just 21 years old, proving yet again that men like ‘em very young. Last year’s chart-topper, 26-year-old Jessica Alba dropped down to No. 3, while Jessica Biel (also 26) came in second and Elisha Cuthbert (another 26-year-old) came in fourth.

In looking for a suitable photo for this post, I came across more sexy Megan Fox pictures than G-rated ones. Are those even real or are they photoshopped? Because I can’t believe a 21-year-old already has an entire portfolio full of very suggestive poses. I guess if anyone wants to see Megan Fox underwear shots, they’re in luck. Wow.

Anyway, nearly 9 million voters took part in the poll, which you can find at FHMonline.com.

I know I said I usually don’t start watching baseball in earnest until May, but it’s hard not to get caught up in what the Chicago Cubs are doing. They just beat the Rockies 7-6 in 10 innings, after first blowing a 3-0 lead through 5, and then coming back from a 5-3 deficit to take a 6-5 lead going into the bottom of the ninth.

Closer Kerry Wood came on and struck out the first two batters he faced, but then gave up a single to pinch hitter Scott Podseknik, followed by a triple from Ryan Spilborghs to send the game into extras.

Ryan Theriot then came through with an RBI single in the top of the 10th to put the Cubbies back on top 7-6, and Carlos Marmol pitched the bottom of the 10th to close things out.

Wow, the Cubs are winning in ever conceivable way so far this year: blowing teams out, coming from behind, giving up leads and still winning…. Personally, I would have preferred a blowout tonight so I could have gone to bed at a reasonable hour. As it is, I’m probably going to need to take a couple of energy pills to make it through the day tomorrow!

At any rate, the Cubs look unbelievable through 21 games and are now 15-6. But the season is way too long to start talking about the World Series, as Ronny Cedeno reportedly did a few days ago.

That sure would be awesome though!

(AP Photo/Jack Dempsey)

This was one of those months where all of my bills came due within a two to three day period of each other. I spent most of the morning balancing my checkbook and crunching some other numbers to make sure I had enough to cover my new car payment, credit card bill, term insurance premium, and utilities so I could schedule my online payments by Friday’s due date. That’s a lot of money going out all at once! Plus, I had to pay my estimated taxes for the first quarter of 2008 last week, so it doesn’t look like we’re going to hit our savings goal for this month. I hate when that happens!