One of my favorite plants in my garden is my purple irises, not only for the lovely tall flowers, but also because they were a gift from my neighbor from her garden. She was dividing her irises, and kindly shared some with me.

Just imagine this. You’re visiting Los Angeles or New York City, and you point your cell phone camera towards a street. Instantly, your screen shows restaurant reviews, directions to the nearest bus or subway station, historical information about the corner building. iPhone apps work by combining GPS, to pinpoint your location, with your smartphone’s internal compass and camera viewfinder. Here a rundown on some of the latest apps available.

Many of us love the Keurig coffee maker and the mess-less perfect cups of coffee they make but have a problem throwing away all those empty little cups. Fret no more. Use the cups to start seedlings for your spring garden.

One great thing about living in Colorado is the lack of bugs here. Oh we have your standard flies and spiders, but compared to when I lived in the South, this is heaven.  There we suffered from giant mosquitoes, 1/2 inch carpenter ants, chiggers that once sent me to the ER, fleas that love me, and last but definitely not least in the yuk factor, roaches.

Many of us are having Staycations this year, vacations you take at home. Besides looking in your state for national and state parks, interesting towns to visits, or festivals, you can also check your paper or the internet for free summer concerts in the park. I am currently visiting my relatives in Tennessee, and tomorrow night we’re going to a free concert in the park with music by the Symphony Orchestra. It’s been warm here during the day, but at night should be wonderfully pleasant. Hopefully, the fireflies will be lighting the grasses. Today, however, we’re planning our picnic dinner that we’re bringing. Let’s cover some savvy ways to make a wonderful flavorful picnic for little money.