Nine words women use… men: take note!

(1) Fine This is the word women use to end an argument when they are right and you need to shut up.

(2) Five Minutes If she is getting dressed, this means a half an hour. Five minutes is only five minutes if you have just been given five more minutes to watch the game before helping around the house.

(3) Nothing This is the calm before the storm. This means something, and you should be on your toes. Arguments that begin with nothing usually end in fine.

(4) Go Ahead This is a dare, not permission. Don't Do It!

(5) (Loud Sigh) This is actually a word, but is a non-verbal statement often misunderstood by men. A loud sigh means she thinks you are an idiot and wonders why she is wasting her time standing here and arguing with you about nothing. (Refer back to # 3 for the meaning of nothing.)

(6) That's Okay This is one of the most dangerous statements a women can make to a man. That's okay means she wants to think long and hard before deciding how and when you will pay for your mistake.

(7) Thanks A woman is thanking you, do not question, or faint. Just say you're welcome. (I want to add in a clause here - This is true, unless she says 'Thanks a lot' - that is PURE sarcasm and she is not thanking you at all. DO NOT say 'you're welcome' . that will bring on a 'whatever').

(8) Whatever Is a woman's way of saying F*** YOU!

(9) Don't worry about it, I got it Another dangerous statement, meaning this is something that a woman has told a man to do several times, but is now doing it herself. This will later result in a man asking 'What's wrong?' For the woman's response refer to no. 3.

belt up and buckle down!

I was pretty bowled over when I saw that Christmas decorations were doing their job at the local supermarket by the end of September… credit crunch or not, Christmas is coming and I'm gonna have to get a grip on those purse strings!

For me, the hardest part of the buying is for the men in my life: dad, two brothers and hubby (thank goodness I have daughters!) So I thought I'd start right there (get the tricky ones sorted) and with careful use of the search criteria at Etsy.com I was able to find some rather interesting handmade items.

In particular, this solid-looking belt buckle at Metalogical. Not only is this beautifully hand crafted from 1/4" steel it also functions as a bottle opener! Chris, the creator says: "They are a lot of fun. I use mine everyday around 5:00!"