Next to Newsletter: Next to Newsletter- Monday, December 14, 2009

Next to Newsletter

The thrill of shopping without the guilt!

Monday- December 14, 2009
A weekly publication of Next to New Resale Boutique

Morning, everybody!

The holidays are here! Tonight marks the 4th night of Hannukah and Christmas Eve is just 10 days away. It's going to be a busy, busy couple of weeks.

One thing you need to do is clean out some closets- make room for all the bounty that Santa's sure to bring! Here at N2N we're set and ready to go through your cast-offs. Let one of your stops be at N2N...drop off your bags and while you're running the rest of your errands, we'll sort through everything and have a store credit waiting for you when you get back!

Let's do the Wild Card Sale this week...you remember how it works: we have cards labeled with different 30% off departments-ladies' tops, infantwear, dresses, menswear...you get the idea. One card even wins you 30% off of your entire purchase.

New Columns

My husband, Arthur, and I each write twice-a-month columns for The Gainesville Times. His deal with computing and technology issues. Mine deal with whatever strikes my fancy.

His latest was published on December 5th. Click here to read Arthur's piece on taking out the trash on your computer.

My December 11th column is about making holiday memories. Click here to read it.

Free Holiday Music

Get a free holiday music sampler courtesy of iTunes. You’ll find 20 songs, including “O Come All Ye Faithful” as sung by Amy Grant and “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” as sung by Rascal Flatts.

Plus, don’t forget about all of the great holiday music freebies on Amazon. You can still get Sampler Claus for free, as well as a classical holiday music sampler. And of course, there’s the 25 days of free holiday music on Amazon. Enjoy!

Puppy Update

We've had our puppy, Jake, for two weeks now and he's become one of the family. Even the cats have decided that they may let him stick around. Many of you have offered great advice and encouragement on raising a puppy...with folks like Madeline and Suzette, who needs the Dog Whisperer?

One thing everyone seems to be in agreement on is the need for crate training. Jake just spent his first night in his crate and it went well...no accidents and none of the whining we've experienced when he's been closed up in the bathroom.

His small crate will work for a while but I have a feeling this little guy is going to do some serious growing in the coming weeks. Anyone have a medium crate that they'd like to trade for either N2N store credit or a computer tune-up? Just call me for the credit (770-539-1911) or Arthur for the tune-up (770-540-5100).

...and this from Betty Burden, the best friend a homeless animal's ever had:

The Animal Rescue Site is having trouble getting enough people to click on it daily so they can meet their quota of getting FREE FOOD donated every day to abused and neglected animals. It takes less than a minute (about 15 seconds) to go to their site and click on the purple box 'fund food for animals for free'. This doesn't cost you a thing.

Their corporate sponsors/advertisers use the number of daily visits to donate food to abandoned/neglected animals in exchange for advertising.

Here's the web site. Please pass it along to people you know.
http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/

Feeling Invisible?

Lisa Martin sent me this link to Nicole Johnson's "Invisible Woman" video. Take five minutes and watch this piece- you'll be glad you did. Click here to start.

N2N Family News

Kayanne and Abit Massey's grandson, Chandler, has been cast as Will Horton in NBC's Days of Our Lives. Chandler has guest-starred on Army Wives and One Tree Hill. Click here to see him performing his senior song at Norcross High School's graduation just last spring...things are happening fast for this talented young man. Congratulations, Chandler!

Tortugas (Turtles)

These are one of my favorite holiday candy gifts. They're so easy even the smallest child can have a hand in preparing them.

20 small mini pretzels

20 Rolos or caramel centered Hershey's Kisses

20 pecan halves

Preheat oven to 200 degrees F.

Arrange the pretzels in a single layer on a parchment or foil lined cookie sheet. Place one chocolate covered caramel candy on each pretzel.

Bake for 4 minutes. While the candy is warm, press a pecan half onto each candy covered pretzel. Cool completely before storing in an airtight container.

Last Word

Weekly this 'n' that

The Gainesville Evening Optimist Club's 53rd Annual Christmas Tree and Wreath Fundraiser is in full swing. You'll find beautiful trees of all sizes and hand crafted wreaths at the tree lot on Browns Bridge Road next to Gallery (Wolfman's) Furniture.

The Gainesville Evening Optimist Club is dedicated to serving the kids of our area and your tree purchase helps further that mission. Stop by the tree lot any time...if there's no one there, you can just pick out your tree and drop a check through the "Honest John" slot in the door. How's that for easy?

It's heartwarming to see how many people step up to help others during this season of giving. We get lots of folks in shopping for needy families. May I make a suggestion? Why not give a N2N gift certificate as part of your Angel Tree gift?

We'll be glad to convert some of your store credit into a gift certificate or sell you a credit to use as part of your Christmas giving. You'll know the recipient will be able to find great fashions and learn about the many benefits of resale shopping at the same time.

Now, that's the gift that keeps on giving!

We're still collecting both essentials and goodies to send to SSgt Latessa Bortner in Saudi Arabia. So far, the response has been wonderful- you've donated enough for us to send six large flat rate priority boxes!

Here's what she said in her latest email: "We got another box from you yesterday - the parrot magnets were a hit! I also love the Georgia Tech ornaments (though I'm being kind of selfish and have them hanging above my bed so I can see them when I go to sleep instead of putting them on the tree in our work tent ) I can't wait to get back and give all of you a big hug, you just can't know how much your support has meant to me and all of my fellow airmen! "

Packages will be going out to Latessa each Wednesday so please keep the goodies coming in!

Remember to bring in your plastic grocery bags to recycle and register to win a $25.00 store credit. November's winner is Pam Hudgins.

If you'd like to be added to the N2N Hot Flash list and receive freebie and bargain alerts during the week, just email me at next2new@aol.com.

Get a $5.00 store credit to you any time you bring us a new shopper. It's easy. Just bring in your friends who've never tried N2N shopping. When they check out at the register, we'll give YOU a $5.00 credit on the spot.

Let's work to get the word out: friends don't let friends shop retail!

Computer Problems?

Don't hesitate to call Arthur if your computer has a virus or isn't running as fast as it should. He will come to you or you can drop off your PC at Next to New. His rates put the Geeks to shame and your satisfaction is guaranteed. One-on-one instruction available or get some friends together for an even better rate. He can fix software problems through remote access if necessary, so no matter where you are, give him a call - your computer will thank you. You can click here to go to his website.