Will it #Snow? Sounds Like a Good Impetus To Stock Up on Extra #Bedding. #SYWR #WeatherGeek

There may be an accumulation of snow in the metro Atlanta area this weekend! As Winter is finally upon us (for a spell), I thought it was a good time to acquire more stock for the bedding closet. It's always good to have extra blankets, quilts and throws at hand. Besides, I had some limited-time Shop Your Way Rewards (SYWR) points that were due to expire today.

Thus yesterday, using the SYWR points I'd earned from several Sweepstakes Doorbusters Prizes and a few (small denomination) Sweepstakes Prize Points Wins --- approximately $8.00 in points, when taken together --- I ordered two free Cannon Fleece Throws (50" W x 60" L), a Blue Plaid one and a Grey Plaid one, that were $3.99/ea. on sale utilizing the free store pickup service, and which will be lovely for snuggling while reading or watching movies.

Cannon Fleece Throw, Blue Plaid

Cannon Fleece Throw, Grey Plaid

I don't like being overheated, whether it's Winter or Summer. In Winter, I generally keep the thermostat set at around 64 degrees unless somebody is ill or we have guests, in which case I will adjust it accordingly. (There's a decent amount of research regarding how long-term mild cold exposure helps with metabolism by forcing the body to activate brown fat (BAT) in order to expend white fat as energy instead of storing it, which in turn works to keep one lean.) I'd rather snuggle in a blanket, if need be, or add layers of clothing, than be in sweltering heat any day of the year.

Scoring free blankies makes me feel a bit like Linus, though Schroeder is my favorite Peanuts® character. (It's all good, however, because I like Linus, second best. Poor old Charlie Brown.) Perhaps subconsciously, I gravitate toward the blue and the grey colors because of my avid interest in Civil War history. Then, again, I tend to like cool hues in home decor. Who knows really? The mind is a terrible thing....

Setup Your Own Holiday Muzak Channel #DIY #MicrosoftStore #MP3 #Freebies

It's beginning to look a lot like... the gift giving season is in full swing. Promotions are popping up left and right and tons of free goodies are being parceled out. It's a wonderful time to be a bargain hunter-gatherer!

Before the advent of the Internet, one could always suss out what season it was by the type of music being piped into area department stores. Often tinny-sounding versions of the originals, this Muzak was either a bane or blessing depending upon whom one asked. I generally found it annoying, especially around the holidays. I'd rather listen to real music of my own choosi

In that vein, I was happy to discover that the Microsoft Store made a number of Christmas albums available for free download the other day, including the classic A Charlie Brown's Christmas by the Vince Guaraldi Trio (a Jazz standard) along with some Motown and pop tunes. I snagged them all and plan to program my own Holiday "Muzak channel" Playlist to beam across the various Bluetooth soundbars and speakers strategically placed throughout my home. Nowadays I shop almost exclusively online, but this doesn't mean I can't enjoy all the trappings of the retail holiday season. As I get to pick the music, I can assure that it doesn't annoy me, however. And you wonder why I love tech.

NOTES: I adored the A Charlie Brown's Christmas animated cartoon as a child and watched it religiously every broadcast. (I still watch it every year, but I now own a digital copy, and thus, no longer need to wait for the television programming.) The accompanying musical score has always held a special place in my heart, and so it was an interesting aside to discover after I moved to the Bay area, that Vince Guaraldi had been born in San Francisco and had died just down the road in Menlo Park. This knowledge added another emotional layer to the music, learning that he'd been a "local boy" to an area I consider my other home. Made him seem almost like a long-lost family member reclaimed.